(Erza's POV)
"Can you tell about the Throne of Atlantis? I heard it chooses its queen itself… because of so strange relics."
Sister Mary's voice carried both reverence and a childlike curiosity. She leaned forward slightly, as though afraid the secret might slip through her fingers if she didn't catch it fast enough.
I exhaled slowly, a wry smile curving my lips. "Yes, it's true. But that stupid throne…" My eyes wandered toward the window, where golden light spilled across the marble floor. "It irritated to no end when it chose ."
Mary blinked, taken aback. "Irritating?"
"Originally," I said, folding my hands neatly on my lap, "God gifted each Primal Dragon a throne—Hexadryne. They were not ornants. They were guardians of power, created to choose queens in our stead."
Her eyes widened with awe, her lips parting as though she were hearing scripture itself.
"God knew us too well," I went on, my voice softening with the cadence of old mory. "If dragons fought over succession, entire continents would have burned or Shattered. So He left the choice to the thrones. No dragon could defy their throne will."
A short, humorless chuckle escaped . "And do you know what the throne has chosen in every age? It has never chosen a male dragon to rule the kingdom. The title of Dragon King is a myth. Throughout history, the throne has always chosen a queen, Sister Mary. Always."
Mary pressed her hands together, almost reverently. "So that is why Monster followed the sa tradition… why queens ca to be worshipped as rulers."
I gave a slight nod. "Yes. If even dragons—creatures born of divinity—trusted won to lead, Other being believed they must follow the sa pattern. That is how the seed of matriarchy spread across kingdoms."
Her gaze softened, but I could feel her hesitation. "I see…"
Silence lingered between us for a breath too long, before I broke it."After my mother died," I began, the words dragging from my chest like stones, "the throne fell silent. It chose no one. For years, it remained dark and lifeless."
The mory pressed on like a weight I could never shrug off. "It wasn't until the day I first drew my sword that the Hexadryne Throne awakened. That day, I was consud by rage. Entire villages of corrupt humans fell beneath my blade. I told myself they were evil, and they were—but still… I cannot pretend my hands weren't soaked in blood. For the longest ti, I believed the throne chose because I was rciless."
Sister Mary's lips parted, her face pale. "My Queen…"
I silenced her with a small shake of my head. "But Yuuta—" My voice softened as his na left my lips. "Yuuta told sothing I could not see. When I confessed this to him, he reminded that even though I killed, I also saved. Elves. Dwarves. Goblins. Ogres. Fairies. Even the grey wolves that humans hunted for fun. Mothers lived because of —mothers who later gave birth to children who would never have taken breath otherwise."
I let out a quiet breath, a faint smile tugging at my lips. "All I ever saw was the blood staining my hands. Yuuta reminded that every action casts two shadows—one dark, one light. I chose to see only the darkness. The throne, however… must have seen the light."
For a mont, silence lingered, and in that silence I felt the echo of the Hexadryne's power, the weight of its judgnt on the day it awakened for alone.
"Perhaps that is why it deed worthy, when none of my siblings were," I said at last.
Mary's fingers tightened around her rosary, her knuckles turning white. "But, my Queen… if you stay away from the throne, will that not wound your kingdom?"
"Of course," I answered, firm and without hesitation. "Without a queen, corruption festers. Slavery returns. Morale dies. A kingdom without its queen is like a body without a heart." My gaze softened, Yuuta's foolish grin flashing in my mind, bright as fire in the dark. "But to … being with Yuuta is worth more than that cursed throne."
Her lips trembled. "Then… could you not pass the throne to one of your siblings?"
A bitter laugh escaped . "Possible? Yes. But none of them have ever proven themselves worthy of the Hexadryne." My voice lowered, colder now. "And besides… once a queen is chosen, the throne will not bend to another. Not unless it deems her unworthy. That law is written into its very soul."
I leaned back slightly, my voice quieter, almost confessional. "In theory, I could pass it on. If they walked the sa blood-soaked road I once did, if they suffered as I did, the throne might strip of my title and grant it to them. But my siblings and I… we are not on such terms. If I handed them that power, they would not stop at the throne. They would kill Yuuta. They would kill my children. And that… I will never allow."
The room grew still, the silence so heavy it felt alive.
Sister Mary's shoulders trembled. Her lips quivered as she whispered, "I never imagined… how much you have been suffering, my Queen."
Sister Mary's gaze lingered on for a long, unbroken mont. Her fingers curled tighter around the rosary resting against her chest, as if holding onto it was the only way to steady her heart. At last, she exhaled, the sound fragile—like candlelight flickering against a draft.
"Losing your mother when you were only seven… falling in love with a human… carrying a child in humalitation, clinging to Yuuta just to stand. A son cursed with black hair, a daughter born with crimson eyes. A boy who even raised his blade against his own father. A throne that binds you to rule, whether you wish it or not."
Her voice faltered, and I could almost see the weight of my life pressing upon her own shoulders. "…You cannot live happily, yet you are denied despair as well. My queen… how do you endure all of this?"
Her words settled over the chamber like a heavy shroud. I did not answer at once. My eyes dropped to my hands folded in my lap—hands scarred from countless battles, calloused yet steady. They had never trembled before an enemy, and yet… they trembled faintly now, when the ghosts of mory pressed too close.
A small laugh escaped , bitter and cracked at the edges. "It's fine," I whispered, though the word tasted like ash. "I've grown used to it. Perhaps God despises . Why else would He weave such a fate? Why else would He let suffer without end?"
The silence that followed was suffocating. Even the candle beside us seed to hesitate in its flicker, as though reluctant to break the stillness.
When Sister Mary finally spoke, her voice was soft, scarcely more than a thread of sound. "Sotis darkness stretches long and thick, my queen. It feels endless. But night is never eternal. Sooner or later, the sun rises. A new day always cos. And when that day cos… happiness will return to you. You will thank God then—for letting you live long enough to see it."
Her words pierced deeper than I wished to admit. My head tilted back and a laugh slipped free, fragile this ti, as though made of glass about to crack. "Then I pray that day cos soon… before death claims first."
For a fleeting mont, I felt her kindness tugging at the edges of my resolve, threatening to unravel the walls I had built around myself. I could not allow it. Not now.
Straightening, I smoothed the steel back into my voice. "Enough about ," I said, letting authority reclaim its place in the room.
My eyes narrowed, lips curving faintly. "Tell , Sister Mary—how did you manage to raise Yuuta? Hm? That mortal must have been more of a headache to you than any throne has ever been to ."
Sister Mary's laughter rang through the room, soft and unhurried, carrying with it a warmth that reminded of a mother's fond recollection—or perhaps an elder sister reminiscing about a mischievous younger brother.
"No, my queen," she said at last, her eyes creasing with a tenderness that spoke of years gone by. "Yuuta was never troubleso as a child. He was quiet. Fragile. Like a rabbit startled at every sound… or a kitten, always searching for sowhere safe to curl into."
The laughter faded from her lips, leaving a silence that lingered like dust in sunlight. She closed her eyes for a heartbeat, as though allowing herself to be pulled back into an old mory. When her voice returned, it was softer, thinner, like parchnt worn with age.
"I still rember the first ti I t him. I was a prisoner then. The queen herself brought Yuuta before ."
My brows rose at once. "You… were a prisoner?"
Her expression did not change; she spoke as if recalling sothing inevitable. "Of course. I had once tried to seize the Elven Kingdom. My arrogance led to the queen's feet, defeated and humiliated. The trial was rciless—they dragged every cri, every betrayal, into the light. In the end, they spared my life only to strip of everything else. They sentenced to exile."
Her lips curved faintly, though it was a smile without joy. "You know what exile ans for us elves, don't you, my queen? It is worse than chains. To be cut from our holand, from the mana of our forests… it is to slowly rot while still alive. Most wither away. Others are sold, bound in chains until death. A few die under the claws of beasts, naless and forgotten. That was the end I expected."
I gave a slow nod. "Yes. I know. Many of the elves who serve under in Atlantis suffer the sa curse if kept from their woods too long. That is why I grant them leave to return, so their souls do not wither."
Her eyes flickered at that—touched, perhaps, by my understanding. But her voice grew distant once more, as if her mind had already returned to the past. "I believed that was how I would die—either by a monster's claw, by the cruelty of n, or slowly, painfully, as my body betrayed . But instead… the queen placed a child infront of ."
Her voice faltered, though her lips held a small, trembling smile. "His eyes were the color of Red blood, and his hair was black as midnight. At first, I thought he was the child of prophecy—the boy said to one day raise his blade against the world, all for the sake of his beloved. I thought I was being cursed, forced to raise disaster itself as punishnt for my sins. But no…"
She opened her eyes then and t mine. What I saw there was not fear, nor regret, but affection that had survived the weight of years. "He was nothing like that. He was innocent. A small boy, fragile and frightened, but desperate—desperate for love."
Her words washed over like a tide both warm and aching. My lips curved, unguarded, into a smile. I leaned back, letting the mory of that fool's face rise in my mind.
"And do you know who that little boy was, My Queen?" Sister Mary asked, her lips curving into a mischievous smile, her tone teasing as if she already knew the answer.
"Yes," I said softly, my voice rich with pride. "And I know very well who he was, Sister Mary."
A quiet laugh slipped past my lips, carrying with it the kind of affection that only love could give. "He was my fool. My Mortal. My Only husband."
"Yuuta Kounari."
To be continue.
(Yuuta POV)
Well… sorry, guys. You probably didn't sign up to read two won exchanging endless gossip, right? But here I am, stuck in the middle of it. Honestly, I don't even know how many chapters they'll need before they finally run out of things to talk about. Uff… my poor ears.
Just when I thought I was safe,
BAM!
BAM!—the bedroom door shook like soone was about to break it down.
Yeah… you guessed it right.
Erza, My Lizard queen.
Her voice thundered from the other side, "What did you just say, you stupid mortal?!"
Thank every god in the heavens I locked the door beforehand. If I hadn't… well, this chapter might've been the last you'd see of . I swear, she would've roasted alive on the spot.
…Anyway, let's just move on before she figures out another way inside.
And, uh… if you're feeling generous or just want to survive another chapter maybe toss a few powerstones my way. I promise I'll spend them wisely… mostly.
Please ༎ຶ‿༎ຶ.
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