Seojun exhaled slowly, his shoulders relaxing. "…Alright, Mom. I'll enter the right door."
But before she could smile, he added, "But Take these guys with you." He glanced at Grimzark, Belgrom, and Ssivar, who were standing a short distance away, watching.
"Protect my mom," Seojun ordered firmly.
Belgrom slamd his fist to his chest and Ssivar lowered his head deeply, both speaking in unison, "We will, even if it costs our lives, for our Lord Mother's safety."
"I'll see you after this, Seojun." Lauren hugged seojun quickly and run to the left door imdiately followed by Belgrom and Ssivar.
Grimzark then grab Seojun shoulder and said, "Don't worry, Your Mom is safe with " seojun nodded and followed. Seojun waited until everyone is gone leaving him alone.
Seojun was just about to step toward the right door when a gentle hand caught his arm.
"Good luck, my prince," Aelorie's voice said softly.
Seojun looked down at her, but when he lifted his gaze again, he froze for a second. She was no longer in the form of a small child. Before him now stood Aelorie in her adult form, her features refined and beautiful, her silver hair flowing freely as her eyes held a deep, graceful light.
His eyes flicked to the side and noticed the crown prince sitting weakly on the ground.
"The royal bloodline helped restore so of my strength," Aelorie explained with a small smile. Then she tilted her head slightly and asked, "Seojun, do you like how I look?"
"Yes," Seojun replied simply. "Better than a child."
Aelorie let out a soft laugh at his bluntness. "How righteous," she teased. "But I can't maintain this appearance for long. I still need more ti to rest."
"Then rest," Seojun said as he turned to leave.
Before he could take a step, Aelorie's hand tightened on his arm again. "I have a question."
Seojun waited silently, and then Aelorie gave him the sweetest smile she could muster, one so warm it montarily caught him off guard. There was sothing in her eyes—longing, almost like a hidden ache.
"How is Yggrith?" she asked softly.
"You know her?" Seojun asked, a hint of surprise in his tone.
"Of course," Aelorie replied, chuckling lightly. "She's my twin sister. You'll know more about us in ti."
"No wonder," Seojun muttered. "You give off the sa presence as her."
Aelorie's smile faltered for just a mont, as if she were thinking of sothing else, then she asked an odd question. "If I were human… would you like ?"
Seojun was silent for a while. He had never thought about love, not even once. Finally, he glanced away and said, "I don't have ti for such things."
Aelorie's smile returned, softer this ti. "I'll take that as a yes. Now go on… good luck."
Seojun finally turned away and walked toward the right portal. His figure disappeared into the light, leaving only the faint echo of his footsteps.
The crown prince, still sitting weakly on the ground, let out a tired breath. "Ms. Aelorie…"
Aelorie sighed and tilted her head toward him. "I know. It's forbidden to love a human."
Callan's brows furrowed in confusion. "I don't understand, Ms. Aelorie. Why him?"
She glanced at him, her expression soft, almost pitiful.
Callan frowned even more. "Why are you looking at like that?"
Aelorie clicked her tongue twice. "Tsk, tsk… that's why you're still a virgin."
Callan's eyes flew wide open, his cheeks burning red as he almost raised his voice. "Ms. Aelorie!"
The prince quickly lowered his voice to a whisper, clearly embarrassed, especially when he noticed a nearby knight trying to hide a smirk after overhearing.
Aelorie crossed her arms. "I was trapped in that cursed forest for a long ti. If he hadn't saved , the forest would have drained completely until I turned to dust and disappeared. And also…" She paused for a mont, her eyes growing distant. "Seojun isn't the type to admire instantly or fall for just because he's seen my true appearance."
She let out a light laugh. "When you were a child and saw for the first ti, you imdiately ran to the king and told him to marry ."
Callan's face turned even redder, his embarrassnt now complete. He looked away and muttered under his breath, pretending not to rember but the mory was obviously still fresh.
Aelorie's eyes scanned the area casually until they stopped on soone standing awkwardly near them. Her eyes widened in mild surprise. "Why are you still here, Dayanara?"
Dayanara flinched as if caught doing sothing wrong. Her face turned red and she scratched her cheek. "Uh… I, uh… needed to take a leak." She imdiately panicked, waving her hands. "But I didn't hear anything!"
Without giving Aelorie a chance to respond, Dayanara turned around quickly, planning to run straight toward the left door. But before she could take two steps, sothing suddenly tightened around her ankle.
She froze and looked down—only to see a thick vine coiling around her foot.
"What the—?!" Dayanara barely had ti to react before the vine yanked her off her feet, dragging her across the floor with surprising force. She shouted in alarm as the vine swung her up and flung her toward the glowing right portal.
"You've got to be kidding !" she cursed loudly before disappearing into the light.
Aelorie chuckled softly at the sight.
"Ms. Aelorie, you should have let her choose on her own," Callan said with a sigh, shaking his head.
But Aelorie's smile faded slightly. Her gaze drifted toward the right portal, her mind clearly elsewhere. It was as if a sudden thought had taken root—an idea.
Dayanara was thrown into the right portal, and in the next mont, the light around her vanished. She found herself high in the air, the wind slamming against her face as her body spun out of control.
Her eyes widened. "Oh, hell no!" she thought.
Far below, the dark green roof of a massive forest rushed toward her. In the middle of the trees, she spotted a giant branch stretching out like a jagged spear right in the path of her fall.
Twisting her body mid-air, she bent her knees and tucked her arms close, forcing herself into a tight roll to adjust her spin. The wind roared past her ears as she shifted her weight, letting her body tilt just enough to avoid the thick branch.
The rough bark scraped against her sleeve as she narrowly passed it, then she kicked her legs out, using the montum to grab a smaller branch with her left hand.
The force almost tore her shoulder, but she gritted her teeth, swinging her body around the branch in one smooth arc before letting go.
Her boots landed lightly on another branch below, the wood creaking under her weight, but she bent her knees low to absorb the impact.
She imdiately pushed off, leaping to the next branch like she had done it a hundred tis before, her coat fluttering behind her.
Finally, she landed on a thick, moss-covered trunk, one foot planted forward, one behind, her balance steady despite the long drop below.
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