Part 1 – A Forced Meeting in the Abyss

The abyss twisted and churned as reality warped around Leonard. The golden door cracked open, unleashing a wave of shifting mist. His instincts screamed at him, but before he could react, something—or rather, someone—was pulled through.

A figure fell forward, collapsing onto the abyss floor.

Leonard’s breath caught. His eyes widened.

Freya Ravencroft.

But she wasn’t the same flickering shadow he had seen before. This time, she was real.

She gasped, her red hair splayed across the dark, swirling mist. Her expression twisted into sheer confusion as she pushed herself up, her crimson eyes locking onto him. For a second, there was silence—the kind before an inevitable storm.

Then—

"You!"

Her voice was sharp, cutting through the void like a blade. Panic and fury warred in her gaze. Her hand shot to her hip, where a weapon should be—but there was nothing. She had been dragged in unarmed.

She scrambled to her feet, backing away instinctively, her gaze darting around. The Abyss Veil was unlike anything she had ever seen. The shifting purple mist, the eerie silence, the distant flickering shadows—this wasn’t magic. This was something beyond her understanding.

And standing before her was the one man who felt responsible.

"What… what did you do?!" she spat, glaring at him like he was a heretic.

Leonard raised his hands slightly, half in surrender, half in confusion. "Wait—"

"You dragged me into this! This cursed place—this isn't the real world! What magic is this?!"

Leonard opened his mouth to explain, but her fury intensified.

Her noble upbringing, her natural confidence—even when faced with the unknown, she did not waver. Her voice was sharp, filled with accusation.

"You’re one of them, aren’t you?"

Leonard froze. "One of who?"

Freya’s expression darkened. "The cultists."

Her words hit him like a brick.

Leonard blinked. "What?"

Freya took a step forward, her jaw clenched and her eyes filled with disbelief. “I knew something was off from the start. The night knights found you, when you survived where no one else did. And now this? You’re proving it. You’re involved with the Abyss, aren’t you?”

Her voice was sharp, filled with suspicion. To her, this wasn’t a coincidence—it was proof. Leonard Astraeus was tangled up with something dark, something dangerous. And she, the princess of the empire that had burned cultists alive, was determined to root it out.

Leonard raised his hands in a calming gesture, trying to steady the situation. “Wait, hold on—this isn’t what you think,” he began, his voice attempting to defuse the growing tension between them. “I’m not involved with any cult or the Abyss. You’ve got it all wrong. I just—”

“You think I’m wrong?” Freya snapped, cutting him off before he could continue. Her eyes flared with fiery determination, the suspicion in her voice escalating into outright accusation. “You’ve been hiding something from the start. How else would you survive the way you did? How else would you be here, of all places?”

Leonard's brow furrowed as his patience began to wear thin. “You think you have it all figured out?” he snapped back, frustrated. “How do you even know who I am? Why do you think I’d be involved with the Abyss in the first place?”

Freya didn’t flinch, her gaze unwavering. “The whole capital knows your name. Leonard Astraeus, the writer who disappeared, then resurfaced like a ghost. The same man who survived when everyone else perished. You really think no one would notice?”

Leonard’s attempts to calm her crumbled under the weight of her anger and her relentless accusations. “Please, just—”

“I’m not asking for your excuses,” Freya shot back, her voice growing colder. “You’re involved with forces beyond your control. I’ve seen it before—cults, rituals, the Abyss itself. And now I see you, standing here like some damn puppet. Just another fool playing with powers they don’t understand.”

Leonard’s face darkened at her words. He took a deep breath, trying to maintain control, but the frustration welled up inside him. “You don’t know what this is. You don’t know anything about this place.”

Freya didn’t seem to care. “Oh, I know more than you think,” she hissed, taking a step closer, her eyes flashing. “I know the Abyss. I know what it does. And I know exactly who gets tangled in its web.”

Leonard couldn’t stop himself now. The patience he’d been trying to hold onto slipped away. “So you think you know everything because of your title? You think you can just walk in here and act like you understand it all? You're just a princess playing pretend!”

Freya flinched, but her fury didn’t falter. Leonard felt the anger bubbling up inside him, but he wasn’t finished. “You think your royal blood gives you power over the Abyss? Think again. This place doesn’t care who you are, or what you think you know.”

The silence that followed was thick, but neither of them moved. Leonard’s frustration continued to build, but now, he could see something else in Freya’s eyes. She wasn’t just angry—she was scared. But even that didn’t stop her from pressing on, her voice steely with determination.

Leonard stood firm, his fists clenched by his sides as Freya glared at him, every inch of her royal composure crumbling in the face of her frustration. Her words stung, but they also stirred something deep within him. This wasn’t just about accusations anymore—this was about survival. And as much as he resented her assuming the worst, part of him understood. After all, how could she possibly understand what he was going through?

Freya wasn’t backing down. “You’re not just a victim here, Leonard. You’re playing with powers that shouldn’t even exist. Powers that shouldn’t be touched, let alone wielded by someone like you.”

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Leonard bit back a retort, but the words bubbled up anyway. “And you think you know what’s best? You think I have some control over this? I’m barely holding on to what’s left of myself!”

Her face hardened. “You can tell me all you want about how you’re just a victim, but the truth is in the way you act, in the way you look. You survived when no one else did. You’ve been to the Abyss, and now… now you want to pretend that you’re not a part of it? I don’t think so.”

Leonard stepped closer, his breath shallow, his body tense. “You want me to explain something? I don’t even know what’s happening. I don’t know what this place is or why I’m here. I don’t understand what’s going on any more than you do.”

Freya’s voice dropped to a dangerous level. “Then why haven’t you told anyone? Why are you hiding all of this? If you’re so innocent, then why is everything so damn suspicious about you?”

Leonard’s frustration boiled over. “Because nothing makes sense anymore! I don’t know who I am, where I’m supposed to be, or what’s going on with the world. I’m just… stuck!”

A silence stretched between them, the tension thick and almost suffocating. Freya stared at him, and for the first time, something flickered behind her anger. Doubt? Confusion? Or maybe even a hint of sympathy.

But it was quickly replaced by resolve. “If you’re not involved with the Abyss, then why don’t you prove it? The truth will always come out, Leonard. And when it does, you’ll see just how dangerous it is to mess with things that shouldn’t be touched.”

Leonard scoffed, running a hand through his hair in frustration. “Dangerous? You think I haven’t figured that out by now? I’m the one trapped in the middle of all this, trying to survive in a world that I don’t understand. If anyone should be afraid, it’s me.”

Freya’s expression softened, if only slightly. She seemed to take a moment to process his words before her eyes narrowed again. “You’re right about one thing, though,” she said, her voice less sharp now, more contemplative. “This place—whatever it is—can’t be understood. And it’s dangerous. For both of us.”

Leonard nodded, feeling his anger subside, replaced by a gnawing uncertainty. “Then maybe we should stop accusing each other and start figuring out what the hell is really going on.”

Freya took a deep breath, her anger still simmering beneath her cool exterior. She hadn’t expected to find herself in this situation—challenging someone she didn’t trust, someone who was tied to the Abyss. She had always believed the Abyss was just a myth, a legend of horrors told by the few surviving cultists. But now, standing here, facing Leonard, and hearing his desperate words... she couldn’t ignore it any longer.

The Abyss was real. It existed.

And Leonard? She didn’t know if he was a victim or something far more dangerous.

Her voice softened, her tone laced with cautious rationality. “Fine. I’ll listen to you. But understand this, Leonard—whatever you’re involved with, it’s not just dangerous, it’s deadly. And I’m not letting you drag me into it.”

Leonard remained silent, his body still tense, but something in his eyes shifted. The anger was there, yes, but it was tempered with the weight of something else, something deeper.

Then, to Freya’s surprise, Leonard spoke, his voice barely above a whisper. “I saw it.”

Freya froze, her heart skipping a beat. “What?” she asked, her voice tight with confusion.

“I saw it,” Leonard repeated, his eyes fixed on her, as if he were reliving the moment. “Your curse… I even touched it before.”

The words hit Freya like a slap to the face. She stumbled back slightly, her eyes widening in disbelief. "What are you talking about?" she demanded, her mind racing. Her first instinct was to dismiss him, but the way he spoke... it didn’t sound like a lie. It sounded like a confession.

Leonard’s gaze grew distant, his voice trembling slightly as memories resurfaced. “I was in the Abyss. When I... entered it, I saw it—your curse. Your mark. I reached out, and for a moment, I felt it—something ancient, something tied to you.”

Freya’s chest tightened, her breath catching in her throat. “How could you possibly know that? How could you have touched it? You’re telling me you’ve been in the Abyss too?”

Leonard shook his head, frustration flickering across his face. “I don’t know what it means. I didn’t understand it at the time. I still don’t. But I can feel it—its connection to you. And I can’t ignore it any longer.”

A long silence stretched between them, the tension palpable. Freya’s mind raced as she processed what Leonard had just revealed. How could he know something so intimate, so personal? And more importantly, why was he even telling her this now? Was he trying to use her weakness against her? Or was there something else at play here, something deeper than either of them understood?

Finally, Freya found her voice, though it was quieter than before, filled with uncertainty. “You… you saw it. You touched it. But why are you telling me this?”

Leonard looked at her, his eyes tired but unwavering. “Because I don’t know what’s going on, and I’m trying to understand it. I’m not your enemy, Freya. But if we’re going to get through this, we need to figure this out together. You’re not the only one cursed by the Abyss.”

Freya stared at him for a long moment, her crimson eyes narrowed in thought. She didn’t trust him. Not yet. But there was something in his voice—something raw, desperate, and unguarded—that made her question her own assumptions. She knew better than to let her guard down, but maybe… maybe Leonard wasn’t the enemy she thought he was.

Part 2 - The Trial of Corruption for Princess

The air grew heavy as a chilling silence swept across the space, broken only by the distant ticking of an old clock. It appeared suddenly, an ancient timepiece that seemed to have materialized from thin air. Its face was cracked, its hands trembling as though marking the passage of time itself.

Then, the mist grew denser, swirling with an eerie, unnatural movement. But it wasn’t Leonard who felt the weight of it. The thick fog pressed in on Freya, its oppressive force suffocating her, as though the very atmosphere was conspiring against her. She gasped, her breath shallow, struggling to stand against it.

“What… What’s happening?” Freya’s voice wavered, eyes wide with confusion and fear.

Leonard’s heart raced. “Freya, get back!” He reached for her, but the space between them seemed to stretch endlessly, a barrier he couldn’t break.

And then, with a sudden, violent force, the mist erupted, and shadowy hands—long, bony, and made of the same dark fog—shot out from the mist like claws, latching onto Freya. They wrapped around her arms, her legs, pulling her toward a door that materialized in the center of the room. It was as if the door had always been there, hidden in plain sight, but now it was wide open, a gateway to an unknown terror.

“No! What is this?” Freya’s voice cracked with panic as she struggled against the unseen force, but it was no use. The hands of mist held her fast, dragging her closer to the door.

“Freya!” Leonard screamed, rushing forward, his legs moving faster than he thought possible. He reached out to grab her, to stop her from being pulled into whatever nightmare awaited her beyond that door.

But it was too late.

With a terrible, resounding creak, the door slammed shut just as Leonard’s fingers brushed the edge of her sleeve. The mist began to recede, but the air remained thick with a sense of impending doom. Leonard stood frozen, staring at the place where Freya had been, his chest heaving with panic and disbelief. He couldn’t understand what had just happened. He couldn’t even comprehend what he had witnessed.

Then the clock struck.

Midnight.

The sound of the bell was deafening, echoing through the stillness, a chilling reminder of the passing of time. But it wasn’t just the bell that lingered in the air. It was the whispers. They came from nowhere, and yet from everywhere, overlapping in a maddening cacophony of voices.

“Trial of corruption... begin…”

The words were spoken in a dozen different tones, some mocking, others distant and cold. They all bled together into a single sentence that sent shivers down Leonard’s spine.

He turned in every direction, his eyes wide with terror. The whispers seemed to come from the very walls, from the shadows that stretched unnaturally across the room. It was as if the Abyss itself had taken notice, and now Leonard was caught in its grasp. There was nothing he could do. No way to save Freya. No way to stop what was coming.

The laughter, though, that’s what haunted him most.

It wasn’t just laughter. It was the laughter of the damned. It echoed in his ears, twisted and unhinged, reverberating in his mind. Leonard stumbled backward, his heart pounding in his chest, feeling as though the walls were closing in on him. He couldn’t think. He couldn’t breathe. The trial had begun, and there was nothing left to do but watch.

The darkness of the Abyss swirled around him, and Leonard’s vision blurred. He couldn’t even see straight anymore. All he could do was stand there in disbelief, helpless, as the voices continued to laugh, the clock continued to strike, and the weight of the trial pressed down on him.

And somewhere, in the depths of the mist, Freya was lost to it.