"Goodbye Mother. I wish you the best of luck during this conflict. Pray that I can return to the Sky Empire sooner than anticipated," Aurelia stated.

"It would not be nice if you returned too quickly. Consider the devastation and chaos caused by war. No, you would not want to come back. Queen Artemis brushed away a tear from the corner of her eye. "Come over here, you tiny girl!" The queen drew Aurelia into a tight hug and embraced her daughter with her arms. Tears streamed from the queen's chin, dampening Aurelia's spirits. "You have to go now or you will never make it to the Light Realm before dusk. Good-bye, Aurelia. I hope we meet again." With that, Queen Artemis let go of her only daughter, the next heir to the throne.

Aurelia straddled her horse and galloped off on her father's very own warhorse, Silver.

At first, Aurelia felt simply emotionless, but once she reached the forest where her father was murdered, hot tears filled her eyes, blurring her vision. Not now! She scolded herself. Unfortunately, she couldn't stop her tears from cascading down on time. Hot tears flew down her cheeks like a little stream, and she rubbed her eyes harshly. Her most trusted maid and best friend, Esme, immediately rushed to her side. "Aurelia, listen, I'm only supposed to give these to you when it's time, but I suppose they're needed now." Esme took out a pendant and a hairpin with a rose on it. Aurelia recognized the hairpin immediately but couldn't figure out who gave the pendant. After guessing a few times, Aurelia gave up. "Alright, who gave the pendant? It's pretty exquisite. That person has good taste." Aurelia commented on this, noticing the pendant's shimmer and art. "Is this meant to replicate the cliffs and the sea?" Aurelia asked, delicately holding up the pendant. "It's from Luce. He wanted you to have it along with this note." Esme fished out a neatly folded letter from her pocket and handed it to Aurelia. Aurelia unfolded it and began reading the letter.

_______________________________________________________________________

Dear Aurelia,

Although we are not meant to be friends, I believe we will meet again someday. Esme told me you're going to be sent away to the Light Realm, so I'm writing this letter so you'll remember me when we meet again one day.

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If we ever meet again, it would most likely be on the battlefield. This pendant is so I can verify if it's you easily. Please wear it at all times, as I'm wasting no chances at meeting you again. I am currently writing this letter in your room on top of the glass table that directly looks down into the rose garden. You certainly look cute when you sleep. While you are reading this letter, it's most likely that I'm currently trying to wear every piece of armor, or perhaps I'm already on the battlefield. Either way, I promise I'll wait for you. Stay safe.

Signed,

Luce.

_______________________________________________________________________

Aurelia blushed. It had been a while since a boy last wrote a letter to her, let alone one from a different part of the world. And looking at her while she slept wasn't exactly creepy, if the boy wasn't going to harm her. Anyway, it's not like he's a gangster. To be honest, he's actually quite the opposite of what I would've expected. So unfit to be the Underworld's king, yet so suitable for our kingdom. Aurelia knocked her head with the heel of her hand. What was she thinking? It was quite an impossible thing for her to marry Luce. Anyway, she had only known him for a day, not years. But what a lovely daydream. If only life were so simple. Now, if she and Luce had been citizens, they could easily get together, get married and live their happy ever after. But no, fate just had to make them royals from rival families and put them through this fucking war. If only... Aurelia's thoughts were interrupted by Esme. "So, are you listening to me or not?"

"Sorry, I didn't catch that. What were you saying?" Aurelia asked as politely as she could, knowing better than to offend Esme, as she wasn't even close to listening.

"As I was saying," Esme rolled her eyes, " did you hear about the magic keys at the Light Realm? Apparently it's the key to some room behind the Crystal Falls rumored to be able to see the future. Just step into the room, close your eyes, and think about a person. Legend says that you will see your future with the person in mind. Now isn't that interesting?" Esme was surprisingly energetic for eight in the morning, and they hadn't even had breakfast yet.

"Well, I'm not surprised if you believe in such things," replied Aurelia bluntly. Secretly, she believed it herself, and hoped that she could get her hands on that key.

"No chance of us getting that key, even if you believe in it. You'll be way too busy with training."

And from there, they rode on in silence to the Light Realm, praying with all their hearts it wouldn't rain.