WINTER'S heart broke when Captain Denver handed him a bland black urn where his mother's ashes were apparently kept.

Miss Luna, the witch, didn't answer his question about his mother's punishment because apparently, she still couldn't trust him yet. He understood her decision. Since he might be controlled again, it would be better not to learn too much information for now.

"Miss Luna retrieved Lady Prescott's body before they throw it in the River of Sin. Then, she cremated the Supreme's body and kept the ashes in this urn," Captain Denver said in a voice filled with pain. The River of Sin was the river in front of St. Ibela– the prison for the most dangerous criminals of the empire. The bodies of the executed hard criminals were usually thrown in that river. "To think that they tried to throw the Supreme's body in the River of Sin is something that never fails to make me angry."

"Save that anger, Captain Denver," Winter said, his eyes glowing from anger. Still, despite the anger rising up in his chest, he craddled the urn in his arms as if it was the most fragile thing in the world. "We will make them pay for disrespecting my mother's remains."

He still hasn't moved on from the fact that her mother was publicly executed for something that she didn't do.

According to Captain Denver, to avoid panic among the people and to protect his position as the emperor's heir, His Majesty kept his mother's real identity as the Supreme Fire Mage. Only a few higher nobles knew the truth. And they all agreed to keep it a secret to protect the throne.

Instead, his poor mother was accused of attempting to kill Lucina Morganna several times. They fabricated evidence to make his mommy guilty of the charges against her.

"We failed to protect Mommy," he said in a cracked voice. "Me and Dad."

"Duke Nystrom is still controlled by His Majesty," the captain explained in a frustrated voice. "We tried to take him away too but we failed. Captain Sherwood never leaves your father's side so we're having a hard time trying to reach out to him."

"Then, how did you able to bring me here and snap me out of whatever mind control that they used against me?" he asked curiously. "The last thing I remember is being sent by His Majesty to the North. He asked me to meet the North King and retrive an item from him. But before I reached the border, my squad was attacked. Were you the one who ambushed us?"

"No," Captain Denver said with a firm shake of his head. "The people who attacked you were assassins sent by the Noble Faction to kill you since you're His Majesty's heir. Miss Luna and I used that opportunity to take you away and bring you here."

By "here," the captain meant the small and old house in a poor village that they brought him to after he woke up in the cave. When they arrived in that almost abandoned place, Miss Luna excused herself to apparently treat some sick villagers.

"Can we really trust Miss Luna?" he asked with furrowed brows. "How did you meet him, Captain Denver?"

"Oh, I'm no longer a captain so please feel free to call me by my name, Young Master."

"You're no longer a captain?" he asked, and then he nodded when he remembered what happened before he was brainwashed. "Ah, right. The Fire Mages were captured then. How did you escape, Lord Denver?"

"Lady Prescott helped me escape by letting herself get executed first," the captain said in a cracked voice. "When I escaped the plaza before it was my turn to get executed, Miss Luna appeared before me and helped me escape. Apparently, she could hear the voice of a god called Wixx, the Red Phoenix. This certain god asked her to rescue me."

"Why does she seem to hate me then?"

"I heard from Miss Luna that your mother once tried to kill her," he said while scratching his cheek. "Apparently, Lady Prescott found out that Miss Luna could fix Princess Nia's infertility. Miss Luna pretended to die by the hands of the assassin that your mother sent to kill her. After that, she hid herself until she found the hidden temple of the Moon Priestess. According to her, that was where she met the spirit of the Red Phoenix."

He fell silent for a while.

The information that he heard after he woke up from his long "slumber" made his head hurt. But he was certain of one thing.

"I need to go back to the Royal Capital and pretend that I'm still under their control," Winter said as calmly as he could. Of course, deep inside, he was seething in anger. But he knew by now that he had to be careful. He already lost his mother, so he didn't want to lose his father this time. "I will find a way to snap Dad out of his trance."

"We will support you, Young Master," Captain Denver said. "Actually, Miss Luna already came up with a plan."

***

"ABANDON Duke Prescott."

Winter's brows furrowed when he heard what Miss Luna just said. "Excuse me?"

As per Lord Denver's request, he went to the small house that the witch turned into a "hospital." Thankfully, there were no more patients when he arrived. But Miss Luna was busy making medicine from some herbs. She was currently mixing different plants in a small pot filled with other ingredients that he didn't recognize.

"If you want to avenge your mother, you must forget about your father," Miss Luna said, then she turned to him with cold pink eyes. "The duke isn't himself anymore. I tried to "wake" him up the way I did to you. But I didn't succeed. I have a feeling that somebody else has taken over your father's body."

To say that he was shocked to know that would be an understatement. "Who could steal father's body like that? He's the strongest knight in the empire. I'm certain that he's even stronger than His Majesty."

"You're too naïve, child," the witch said with a mocking laugh. "Even if Duke Prescott is the strongest knight in the empire, he's still nothing compared to a smart emperor who could use people at his disposal properly. So even if Duke Prescott is strong, it's useless if he can't defend himself from people who know all his weakness."

He couldn't refute that. "Fine, I will not try to save my father for now," he said. It wasn't like he was giving up on his dad forever. He just decided to prioritize his revenge. "Lord Denver told me that you have a plan, Miss Luna. May I know what it is?"

"It's not really a plan. Lord Denver is just giving me too much credit," she said while shaking her head. "But before that, do you know that your soul, along with your consciousness, has been sealed by the harsh Black Flame that your stepmother could use for some reason?"

Just hearing about the black flame made his skin crawl.

And even though he didn't want to admit this, the fear that his system had been familiar with made his body shiver.

Dammit.

"Ah, so you know about the Black Flame," the witch said. "Did your stepmother burn you with that unforgiving flame?"

"Countless times," he admitted. "This isn't the first time that I woke up from their mind control, but this is the longest time that I've been conscious. In the past, whenever I would regain my consciousness, Lucina Morganna would burn me with her black flame until I lose consciousness again. I suspect that they take advantage of my vulnerable state to control me."

She fell silent for a while before she spoke again. "I suspect that your father has also gone through the same torture." She gentle tapped her nose with a delicate finger. "When I approached your father some time ago, I smelled the Black Flame all over his body. But the difference is it isn't his physical body that has been burned to death. I have a feeling that the thing that your stepmother has burnt was the duke's soul."

Once again, he was shocked. "How did you know that, Miss Luna?"

"I'm a witch from the Colorless Coven," she said with pride in her voice. "Our pink eyes aren't just pretty. When they are gouge out, they become strong barriers. But as long as a witch from the Colorless Coven is alive, her pinks eyes allow her to see things that ordinary people can't." At that moment, her pink eyes glowed prettily. "In my case, these pretty eyes of mine showed me that the duke's body right now is nothing but a vessel for another being."

"Then, what happened to my father's soul?"

"Well, it's your job to find out," the witch said, then she flickered his forehead that surprised him. Nobody dared to hurt him in the past. But it didn't feel that bad to be "scolded." "My eyes don't explain the things I see."

"I understand," he said while clenching his fists. "Then, can you tell me what I can do for now?"

"We'll head back to the Royal Capital Then, I will help you to infiltrate the High Priest's temple," the witch said seriously. "Once you're there, I want you to find the secret prayer room that will lead you to where the Red Phoenix is."

Winter's eyes widened in shock. "You want me to meet the Red Phoenix?"

"You won't just meet the Red Phoenix," Miss Luna said. "I want you to bring your mother's ashes to that human bird."

Wait, did she just badmouth an Ancient Beast?

***

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