Feeling a forceful push from behind, Thalia fell to the ground.
She turned her head to her behind and saw Callista looking at them with a stone-cold expression.
Unlike what Thalia had expected, her mother hadn't chosen their safety.
It was all a fluke to get her and Elira out of the way.
"Don't worry, those earrings are going to nullify his ability,"
Once she heard her mother say that, she snapped from her daze and watched as Callista drew her bow once again and pointed it at Lucivar. At that mont, ti slowed down substantially. Thalia watched as Callista pulled back the string in slow motion.
Her eyes gradually widened and her breath hitched.
Callista ignored Lucivar's warning and stubbornly aid for the kill.
Just then, a voice rang inside her mind—the question that made her nervous about tonight.
"If it cos down to you or Callista's reputation and face, I wonder... which one she'll choose?"
Lucivar's words repeated inside her mind.
She decided to accept being Lucivar's guarantee, his insurance against Callista because she believed in her heart that once her mother knew about the ability Lucivar used on them, she wouldn't do anything that might endanger them.
No matter how angry and spiteful Callista was, there was no way she would gamble with their lives.
But she did.
Pulling that bowstring ant she accepted the risk of both her daughters' death.
All of that is because she hated Lucivar for making her feel inferior.
All of that is because of her pride.
Despite the earrings, Thalia closed her eyes and turned away out of fear.
Lucivar might be a bad person who prioritized himself more than anything, regardless of how his action would affect those around him—but he wasn't a liar. Or at least, he never lied to her. So naturally, she really believed that she'd die if Callista attempted to do sothing as reckless as trying to kill him.
However, as seconds passed, Thalia didn't feel anything.
'Ah… Maybe it's a swift death. It's like him to do this, he won't be bad to those who don't wrong him'
A helpless smile crept to her face as she accepted her death.
It was not Lucivar's fault, her death was her mother's fault.
All Lucivar was trying to do was to survive and even gave a chance for Callista to turn a new page and work together—but she was too proud to do that. And because of her pride, both her daughters are now dead.
Then, Thalia's eyes shot open when she heard a loud, painful wail.
She blinked a couple of tis, realizing that she wasn't dead—and slowly gazed ahead.
In front of her, Callista was on her knees.
Callista clutched her half-destroyed arm, blood gushing from the mangled flesh in a grotesque display—It was as if her limb had erupted from within. A wave of confusion swept over both Thalia and Elira, yet within Callista's mind, the chaos took an entirely different form.
Instead of confusion, she began to realize that all of this was Lucivar's ploy.
She walked right into the trap that he had set.
'What is that thing earlier?' Callista's bloodshot eyes bore into the ground.
A second before her arm exploded, a wicked jester of black and erald appeared out of nowhere and grabbed her arm. It was an otherworldly entity, sothing sinister—and devious, and whatever it was stopped Callista from releasing the string.
Moreover, it laugher mockingly as if it found Callista funny.
Even now, its laughter still echoes in Callista's ears.
'I got marked, he marked with his ability,' Callista's mind wavered as she couldn't believe that she was outwitted by Lucivar so thoroughly. 'He didn't mark Elira and Thalia with his ability, the mark was on instead! But when…? When did he have the ti to do that? When?!'
Callista's mind worked to its full capacity, thinking of the ti when this could happen.
Just then, her eyes landed on several pieces of gold in front of her.
It was the fragnts from her wedding ring.
And then, she recalled a mont.
It was when Lucivar made his desperate attempt to grab her while being escorted by Zed.
At the ti, Callista thought this was a desperate move as he realized that he had lost.
But that was so far from the truth.
It wasn't a desperate attempt—it was a deliberate one.
Lucivar did that to grab her ring and mark it, he already planned tonight from back then.
'I… I walked right into his trap,' Callista's pupils trembled. "I also gave away my earrings…'
Just then, seeing Callista's priceless expression as she slowly realized—that she ha been dancing in the palm of Lucivar's hand all along, Lucivar erupted into laughter. It was a rich unrestrained sound, laced with both mockery and sheer amusent..
He mocked Callista for falling into his trap as well as amused to see the green sphere gathering above her.
A massive green sphere, the fruit of his labor.
"I knew exactly that you'd do shit like that," Lucivar grinned, standing up straight despite the pain—as the situation was too funny in real life. "I never marked Thalia and Elira, why would I need to do that? I don't have anything against them—and I am not that cruel but more importantly, I know exactly how little you care for them"
Lucivar has been observing Callista from the start.
He could tell from her status, her actions, and even the way she spoke that she was self-centered.
From the way she treated him badly from the start even though he saved Thalia, from the way she ca to decide to accept Mirel as a replacent for soone like Lucivar who she knew for certain was more than capable of protecting her daughters, and even the way she imdiately resorted to holding press conferences once she managed to imprisoned Lucivar regardless of what Elira and Thalia felt.
All of those things are tell-tale signs that Callista only cared about herself the most.
So she would certainly try and kill Lucivar at the last mont.
For her wounded pride.
It would've been fine and repairable if Lucivar was actually dead but he wasn't—he's still alive.
Gritting her teeth, Callista attempted to attack but stopped mid-way.
She grunted heavily as her body felt weak, devoid of any real strength.
Naturally, this was the effect of the Fool's Trick ability.
Lucivar had not only requested the first effect from the Fool—detonating Callista's arm and weakening her strength but he also demanded the third effect, sealing both her power and movent for a period of ti so that he could finish what he planned to do with her.
No matter how much she tries, she won't be able to overpower this.
The Fool's Trick is not a spell, it's a God spell.
It can't be broken with sheer strength.
Realizing that she couldn't move properly, Callista shot a glare toward Lucivar as she knew already that this was his doing. Then, she snapped her head around and looked over to her daughters with bloodshot eyes, "Kill him!" She demanded. "Go and kill him right now!!"
Upon hearing this, the twin tilted their heads down as their expressions darkened.
Seeing that they weren't moving made Callista angrier.
"Do you not see what he did to ?!" She shouted louder. "I'm your mother and you will listen to !"
"Don't waste your breath, Callista, you'll only make the situation worse," Lucivar said under his heavy breaths. "You have shown them your true face, that you didn't care about them. You knew—that I am a very dangerous individual and yet you still acted at face value. Had I really marked them, those earrings of yours would not be able to stop—my ability and they would die. Tsk, tsk, tsk… If I were your son, I too would be disappointed to have a mother like you"
Callista's eyes turned redder.
But she still forced out a smile, the situation wasn't as bad as she thought it was.
"Even so, what do you hope to gain from this?" She snarled, fury lacing every word. "You didn't mark my daughters because of your soft spot for them so they're safe, and you can't kill either because if you did, my husband will hunt you to the end of the world. You may defeat today but without the power to end , you'll never truly win"
"I, on the other hand, will keep coming back," She cackled like a madwoman. "Until the day you lose"
"That's your conclusion?" Lucivar shook his head in disappointnt.
It seed Callista had allowed her emotions to take control, she couldn't think clearly anymore.
Once the mind is defeated, the real defeat is guaranteed to co.
Callista had lost.
"If I was planning to kill you, there's no other choice but to confront your husband so I would be on the Crimson Wolf Clan's side from the side," He explained as if it was common sense. "But I didn't do that so do you think I'm planning to kill you?"
Upon hearing this, Callista's eyes widened.
Since Lucivar wasn't planning on killing her, then there's only one more thing.
She slowly turned around to look at her daughters.
And seeing the sight, her heart skipped a beat.
Thalia was tears-stricken, gazing at Callista with palpable pain behind her eyes.
She hadn't got enough ti to process what she was seeing once Elira on the side made her move.
Elira walked towards her with steady steps.
Despite heading to Callista, her face was still facing down as if Elira couldn't look at her in the eyes.
Once she reached a step away, she finally raised her gaze and locked eyes with Callista.
Callista felt physical pain when she saw Elira's eyes were devoid of any familial warmth, and worse, it almost seed like—she was looking at a stranger. Without hesitation, Elira raised her hand and swung it—slapping Callista across her face.
Pah!
A sharp crack resounded from the slap, and Callista's eyes widened in stunned disbelief.
She turned to look at Elira incredulously and stuttered, "D- Daughter…?"
Elira slapping her was an even greater shock than Lucivar's sche.
"Don't call that anymore, you have no right—after what you just did," Elira answered firmly, tears drizzling down from her eyes but her face remained hard and composed. She has had enough, "You… You're not my mother anymore. If you really were our mother, you wouldn't have done that"
"W- What…?" Callista gulped harshly. "I was doing this for your sake, I was doing this for yo-"
"No," Elira cut her mid-sentence. "You're doing this for yourself"
"Had it not been for Lucivar's kind heart, you would've killed us!" Thalia scread from behind, she was hurt beyond asure that Callista would do sothing like that recklessly. "You're selfish, mom… You never cared about us and now, we can see it clearly"
Upon listening to them from the background, Lucivar's grin stretched wider.
"And just like that…" He mumbled in amusent. "A family is broken"
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