"Tck.... you're lucky, cat girl," Zeon muttered, his crimson eyes narrowing, venom dripping from his voice. "Your precious savior loves you that much."
Dark mist swirled around him as his body faded. The air warped, the atmosphere twisting with his disappearance.... until he was gone, leaving only a faint chill and the ripple of disturbed space.
Fran lowered her head, her hands twisting against each other, her voice small and broken. "I'm sorry.... it will never happen again. I.... I committed a crime that hurt the royalty." Her shoulders trembled, shadows darkening her face.
"Hm.... you should be," Albedo's voice rumbled, deep and cold, his blue eyes glowing with dangerous light.
"Father.... stop!" Dila growled, her voice sharp enough to cut the silence. Her eyes blazed, unyielding. "As I said.... it's not her fault! Now.... get out of the room! Get out!"
The command rang out, raw and fierce, carrying more fire than even her frail body should have been able to muster.
Albedo's gaze hardened, his voice carrying a chilling weight. "You hate me that much, my daughter.... after all the saving I've done for you?"
Dila's face darkened, her chest heaving as her voice broke into a furious shout. "Saving? You saved me nothing!" Her hands clenched at her sides, trembling. "You're the source of my troubles! You forced me to stay here.... you kidnapped me using Zeon!"
Her voice cracked as her eyes glistened, but the fire in them didn't falter. "I was fighting.... fighting tooth and nail against Zeon and you.... just to break free!"
Her cry tore through the chamber, raw with hurt and defiance, echoing against the cold stone walls.
Albedo's voice cracked, his composure finally breaking as his hand reached toward her, trembling. "Did I really lose you, my daughter....?" His eyes watered, glowing faintly as tears welled up and slid down his face. "Where is my real daughter...." His breath hitched, his voice trembling as his chest shook. "Why.... why do I feel like you're not the daughter I raised.... not the one I held.... why.... why!"
His tears fell heavy, the great King of Eldor reduced to a man drowning in grief, clutching the air as if reaching for something already gone.
Dila stayed quiet, her lips pressed tightly together, eyes shadowed. Her chest rose and fell as if she were holding back a storm inside, but no words came out. The silence between them was unbearable, heavier than any sword or spell.
Meanwhile, Fran stood near the corner, her hands fidgeting, her shoulders shrinking. Her blue eyes darted between the two.... watching Albedo's tears, watching Dila's silence. Guilt twisted her heart like a blade. She lowered her head, ears drooping, tail curling close to her leg. Her gaze flickered side to side, torn between them.... unsure if she should speak, unsure if she even had the right to.
The silence shattered as Dila suddenly raised her head, her eyes burning, her voice exploding with a cry that cut through the air. "It's because I'm not her anymore!" Her chest heaved, every word trembling with grief. "I've been alone.... for so many years...." Her voice cracked, her throat raw as if it tore her from the inside.
Her fists clenched at her sides, nails digging into her palms until they stung. Tears streamed down her cheeks, but her glare did not soften. "The daughter you're searching for.... the one you keep calling to.... she's gone! She doesn't exist anymore!"
She shifted around the bed, her voice breaking, but she forced the truth out with trembling lips. "I'm not your daughter.... not the real one.... not the girl you remember...."
Her breath came in ragged gasps, her chest rising and falling violently. The weight of her words pressed into the air like a curse, and for a moment, it felt as though even the walls of the room leaned in, listening.
Albedo froze, his hands suspended in midair, his tears still falling as if time itself had betrayed him. His face went pale, horror and disbelief carving deep lines into his expression.
Fran's heart squeezed painfully as she watched.... her throat tightening as guilt and helplessness churned inside her. She still gaze trembled between Dila and Albedo, her lips parting, but no sound came out. She could only watch, frozen, her ears drooping low as if the weight of the revelation dragged her down.
Albedo's lips quivered, his voice trembling as if it barely held together. He gently grab Dila's right hand gently holding firmly, his eyes wide with desperation. "O-of course.... of course you can't remember," he said, choking on the words. "It's because.... you were taken from me. You were kidnapped by the Berserker.... that's why.... that's why you've forgotten who you truly are...."
His words cracked like broken glass in the air, but Dila's eyes flared with a storm of fury. Her breath hitched as if every piece of her chest was splintering apart. Suddenly, she shouted, her voice sharp and raw. "There is no such thing as a Berserker!" The sound echoed, burning against the silence, her body trembling as she screamed.
The outburst left her panting, her shoulders rising and falling violently. Then.... her voice sank, quivering and fragile, almost a whisper that wasn't meant to be heard. Her lips moved with a bitter confession, the words bleeding out with pain that only she carried. "The only Berserker.... is me...."
Her eyes lowered, glassy with tears, unable to meet Albedo's. Her left hand shook as she pressed them against her chest, as if trying to hold herself together. The air grew heavy with the weight of her truth.... so heavy even Fran, watching in silence, felt her throat tighten with guilt.
Albedo's face went pale, his tears trembling in his eyes but refusing to fall as his world crumbled further.
Dila's chest heaved, her fingers clutching at the sheets as if grounding herself from slipping away into confusion. Her eyes glistened, trembling as she struggled to speak. "But.... there is this memory," she whispered, her voice fragile, wavering as if it might shatter with the next breath.
Her gaze drifted far away, unfocused, as though she were staring into a world only she could see. "I remember.... the Dila girl.... she was so young. She played with her father and mother in the garden...." Her lips quivered as tears spilled down her cheeks. "They were laughing together.... chasing each other around the flowers. Both of them competing for her little attention.... smiling as if nothing in the world mattered more."
Her voice broke as she pressed a trembling hand over her heart. "If only.... if only I had parents who loved me like that...." Her tears fell harder now, wetting her palms, her words cracking with pain. "If only I had that kind of family...."
Albedo froze, his breath stolen from his chest. His eyes widened, filled with desperate hope that swallowed his sorrow whole. "So.... you do remember," he gasped, his voice trembling. Then louder, breaking apart, "You do remember! You're my true daughter!" His shoulders shook as tears escaped him at last, the great King of Eldor collapsing in raw, unguarded relief. "Dila.... my Dila...."
But she shook her head violently, her tears falling harder. "No.... no, it wasn't real," she cried. "It was only in a dream. A dream I had last time.... but...." Her voice faltered, her throat burning as if every word tore at her. "But I couldn't see Mother's face. No matter how much I tried.... her face was gone.... only emptiness where her smile should be...."
Her words lingered like a blade driven straight into Albedo's chest. He stood frozen, his tears halting midstream, his relief turning into a new grief he could not name. The silence that followed was suffocating, heavy with everything unspoken.... and everything lost.
The weight in Dila's chest grew heavier until it felt as if her heart itself was being squeezed. A deep sadness pressed against her soul.... that. why she kept feeling this way.... this endless ache of longing, this emptiness she could never fill. Her lips trembled as tears welled in her eyes, but before she could speak further, her body finally betrayed her.
Her strength broke. Her body gave out, and with a faint gasp she collapsed back onto the bed. The world around her spun violently.... her vision twisted and blurred, the edges darkening as if shadows were closing in. The fire of her emotions had carried her too far, and now the weakness she had been hiding all along dragged her down.
"Dila.... my daughter...." Albedo's voice shook as he dropped to his knees beside the bed, his hands gripping her frail right hand tightly as if she might vanish if he let go. His tears streamed freely, landing upon her pale fingers. "Stay with me.... please.... don't leave me too...."
Dila's eyelids fluttered, heavy and unyielding. She could barely hear him. The sound of his desperation was muffled, distant, like echoes trapped beneath water. Her chest rose and fell unevenly, her lips parting to speak but no words found the strength to escape.
In the corner, Fran had been frozen.... watching every word, every tear, her throat tight with guilt. But when Dila's body unconscious, her heart lurched. She stumbled forward, her small hand instinctively raising as if to reach her, but she stopped halfway, caught between fear and sorrow.
Her blue eyes shimmered with tears, darting between Dila's weakened body and Albedo's grief-stricken face. Finally, her voice cracked, soft and desperate.
"Sister...." she whispered, her words trembling, heavy with worry and pain.
The room seemed to freeze in that moment.... only the sound of their ragged breaths and muffled cries lingered, filling the silence with unbearable weight.