SPELLBOUND

"You must forgive me," Thundrann continued begging. "I am the only royal light fae left, aside from you. You need me. I swear I will be loyal to you and will never betray you. I will help you rebuild Crescia and the light fae empire again! I can help you make it great again! Please… just give me a second chance to right all my wrongs."

"Please don't believe in his lies, my queen. This man is a monster. He does not deserve forgiveness!" Zirrus snarled out in a fit of rage. The urge to just kill the man was apparent in his eyes. If only they did not need the queen to be passing the final sentence on this traitor, he would have long since stabbed and flayed him alive until he bled to death.

"You need me, queen Evielyn. I will do anything and everything I can to help you. You only need to command me. I will swear my life to you!" Thundrann continued pleading until someone arrived, catching Evie's attention.

Zanya stood before Evie.

Judging from their expression, Evie could tell that they came to report on yet another piece of bad news.

"Go ahead," Evie sighed, knowing that there was no way to avoid this.

Zanya stepped in and after taking a soft deep breath, she finally reported. "My queen, we found the dragon guardian's body."

Evie stilled for a long moment. But eventually, her voice came out. "Where?" there was the slightest quiver that only Zanya who were nearest to her could detect in her voice.

"Please follow me." Zanya said, her voice soft.

After taking a few steps, Evie halted and without looking back to Zirrus and Samuel, she ordered in an emotionless voice. "Chain him up for now. Don't kill him… yet." She instructed them before walking away, ignoring Thundrann's yells and begging.

Leon and other light faes were surrounding Lucius' body. When they saw Evie approaching, they respectfully moved away, giving her space to draw closer.

Slowly, Evie approached the body that was now covered with a fairy's white cloak.

She stood there silently for a while before she stretched out her hand and pulled the cover off from his face. Her hands trembled and when she saw her father's face, the cover fluttered from Evie's limp fingers and her hand slowly fell to her sides.

Lucius' face was as white and pale as a sheet of paper. This father of hers who was so dear to her, this father who had adored her ever since she was young, was now still and cold. Seeing him lifeless now and knowing that he was never going to wake up again made Evie's heart shiver uncontrollably and her fingers curled into her palms so hard that her nails cut into her skin and drew blood.

The sorrow she had went through in the past few hours until now was just too much and exceedingly overwhelming that she could no longer cry. She wanted to scream out loud to release all those complicated emotions swirling within her and sob or weep or even strike and destroy something. But all she could do was to grit her teeth and tamp down on that nausea which was threatening to spill out of her.

She hugged her father's cold and stiff body, leaning her head on his chest. However, the pure white silk over his chest was still and unmoving, proof that his heart was no longer beating.

Evie remembered her mother and her heart ached even more. Knowing that her mother was home, waiting for her husband to return to her. But he is now gone forever, and Evie did not know what to do.

This is the first time she is going through so much pain like this all at once. She could not even imagine how devastated her mother would be once she finds out that her beloved husband has gone on before her.

After another long and sorrowful moment, Evie eventually let go. She wanted to break down and cry, but now was not the right time. And besides, even if she wailed her sorrows, her father was never going to come back anymore.

Lifting her hands, magic flowed out from her palms, wrapping itself around her father's body. The magic had fixed all the awful bruises and closed the countless and brutal wounds on his body. Then she faced Zanya.

"I want my father's body to be sent home." She said in a soft, choking voice. "Back to the Southern Empire. My mother… she needs to see him for the last time."

Evie remembered that her mother had always been preparing herself for what might happen every time her father goes off to war. She was aware about the fates of the previous dragon guardians. All of them went to a war one day and never returned. The saddest thing was that even their corpses were never found as well. Evie had heard one day that if fate was going to take Lucius away from her, she only had one wish and that was to see his body for the last time.

So, Evie was going to let her mother's wish come true. She was not going back with her father's body because she had to stay here with Gav and her people. Evie wished with all her heart that she could be there for her mother during this sorrowful time, but she had greater responsibilities awaiting her. That was the lot of a queen.

And thus, Zanya arranged for the light faeries who will deliver Lucius' body back to Ylvia castle in the Southern Empire.

Once Evie bid her farewell to her beloved father, the light faes took Lucius away.

She watched, tears falling quietly from her eyes, until the light faes and her father were gone from her sight.

As her sorrow kept growing, anger began to bloom in Evie's heart. With fists clenched hard into tight balls, Evie strode back to where Thundrann was held imprisoned.

The moment she saw him, anger gripped strongly at her heart. She knew Thundrann was the one who killed her father. He was able to break free from his prison after sacrificing her father's life. He had possessed him and battered him until he had died. She was not going to forgive this evil creature.

She halted and looked at Leon's sword. Without a word, she pulled out Leon's sword and then walked over to where Thundrann was. Her strides were measured and solemn, the aura around her cold and dangerous to the point that if felt as though it could cut anyone who come close.

Everyone reverently and hastily cleared a path for her. She let the tip of the sword drag along, screeching noisily on the concrete ground as she approached Thundrann.

There was only coldness in her eyes that made even her people and the vampires felt taken aback. They all knew what she was about to do.

The light faes were relieved but the vampires were conflicted. Their princess… they had never seen her strike a person to death with her own two hands. Was this really alright? All of them thought that if Prince Gavriel was here, he might not let the princess stain her hands with blood no matter how justified it was.

Thundrann began to beg even harder, pleading louder as Evie slowly approached. But Evie seemed to have turned a deaf ear against his cries.

And the moment she stood before him the sword was swung up high, aiming for his neck that was soon to be a stump without a head.