Core.

Elen stared at the young man before her with a blank expression, then spun around, exposing her back to him without a hint of guard.

King Duran of the Helgner Kingdom blinked, startled.

A king of a nation shouldn’t be treated so casually. Predictably, a tense atmosphere rippled from the guards standing beside Duran, but Duran waved them off with a quiet “No need,” chuckling softly as he kept his eyes fixed on Elen’s back.

Elen turned her face away from Duran and his guards, shielding her expression, then silently mouthed at Kai behind her, her lips moving like a fish gasping for air.

‘Gadiel… please. I can’t protect her alone.’

‘……’

Using silent speech, Elen reached out to Kai. She could only communicate telepathically with Van—she couldn’t do it with Kai, not being a spirit like him.

Gadiel’s guards aren’t here right now. I had Van send them away before the curse took hold.

With Amiel’s spell sealing the spirits’ movements nearby, Van won’t be able to move properly. The only one who can protect Gadiel if things go south is Kai.

Elen has her duties as a goddess to fulfill. Until then, she can’t protect Gadiel. She looked at Kai, clinging to him like a lifeline.

But Kai’s here to protect Elen. That’s why her request made him hesitate—just for a second, a flicker of doubt.

(Van, please…)

(Understood.)

Suddenly, Kai flinched hard, his shoulder jerking as if he’d been shouted at through Van’s mind.

Humans can only communicate telepathically with the spirit they’re bound to. Elen had reached out to Kai through Van.

Kai’s face, for just a moment, twisted into something that looked suspiciously like a painful decision.

He lifted his gaze and nodded straight at Elen.

“Thank you.”

Relief leaked out from Elen—warm, quiet, unmistakable. Kai caught it. His expression softened, just slightly, into something almost sad.

Elen noticed. She didn’t look. Instead, she turned sharply back toward Duran.

Now all Kai could see was Elen’s back—small, slender, carrying a burden so vast it defied human imagination.

—Time moves differently. I’m a spirit, after all.

Elen’s words echoed in his mind.

Only someone who’d spent time beside Van could understand the peace and joy Elen brought—how her presence felt like sunlight on a cold morning.

He couldn’t bear the thought of that smile—so warm, so life-giving—vanishing the moment Lovell returned and Elen stepped into the Vanklyft Family’s world.

Elen’s scream as Gadiel fell wouldn’t leave my head.

Kai ground his molars together. He’d been shown, again and again, where Elen’s heart truly belonged. Why not me? Why would her precious heart turn toward a cursed royal line that slaughtered spirits?

A nausea of disgust churned in my chest—so thick, so raw it could only be called jealousy.

But that feeling was drowned out, obliterated, by the memory of Elen’s scream just now.

To fulfill her wish, Kai clenched his fists and buried the desperate truth screaming inside him.

***

“Finished with your little secret talk?”

When Elen turned back toward Duran, Duran was already grinning like he’d been waiting for this moment.

“Sorry. Done.”

Elen didn’t even bother hiding it—she just said it straight, with a genuine apology. Duran narrowed his eyes.

"Can I call you Princess Elen?"

"Please do."

Duran, having received permission, looked pleased—though the conversation faltered mid-sentence, and he gave Elen a slightly sad look.

"Can't you even remember my name?"

Duran prodded her, when the expected polite reply didn’t come.

Elen pretended to ponder, hand resting on her chin, tilting her head. Still, she made no move to ask his name.

"Harsh. I really want you to call me Princess Elen."

Duran said it with a grin. Elen didn’t show it on her face, but inside, she flinched—*what?*

It felt like she’d pressed on something she shouldn’t have. Dangerous person, she’d thought. Van and the others seemed to think the same—sharp, stifling killing intent flared from behind her.

If Lovell were here, he’d have drawn his sword at once, aimed straight at Duran.

But if I show hesitation now, I’ll just be playing right into their hands, Elen mentally braces herself—when Duval immediately cuts in, sharp and fast.

"Talking here is gauche. Princess Elen, do come to my castle, if you would."

Durant extended a graceful hand toward Elen, as if inviting her to dance. She seemed poised to take it, to let her own hand meet his—but instead, with a smooth, unexpected refusal, she pulled away. For a split second, Durant’s smile froze, caught off guard by the surprise.

Elen’s hand moved, pointing at something. I looked where she was pointing, and there it was—a sphere enveloping Amiel, floating in midair.

What are we supposed to do about that?

Elen’s words were like a riddle, thrown out there with no explanation.

Staring at Duran with eyes like polished gems, gleaming and unblinking. Duran, feeling it, was bursting inside with quiet joy. Unlike Lore, who hadn’t even glanced his way—here was a spirit, locking eyes with him, intent, unyielding.

She was testing him. Just as the rumors said. Not someone you could just charm into submission. Duran smiled, amused.

“Was it you, Princess Elen, who sealed her?”

He answered, deliberately, like he was testing her too. A jab at the pride of a spirit princess—exactly what he’d meant to do. But Elen just blinked, caught off guard.

“Why should I seal the disaster you yourself summoned?”

She shot back, cold and sharp, dismissing any sense of obligation. Duran didn’t flinch. Neither did the guard beside him. But the others around them—well, their expressions gave it away. A ripple of unease.

Must’ve been watching Amiel from afar.

"It wasn’t sealed. Just temporarily locked away. If the curse senses the nature of the magic holding it, it’ll break through instantly."

Curses were just clumps of magical essence. Magic itself was nothing more than the manifestation of that essence.

Amiel’s curse had changed form, trying to swallow everything alive.

If Elen realized the true nature of the magic imprisoning it, she’d be consumed in an instant.

"Troublesome."

Durand replied in a flat tone, already knowing exactly what Elen was getting at.

Offering the answer Elen was clearly expecting.

"Princess Elen, what should we do about this?"

Durand had anticipated she’d offer terms in return—straightforward, direct, just like she always was.

Durand’s goal was to erase the Tembarl royal line entirely, and to build a relationship with Elen. No matter how things turned out, it would go exactly as Durand wished.

"This isn't even human anymore. If it's not human, then we can't do anything about it. We need Elen's power."

"I already said this. Why should I lend my hand to the disaster you summoned? You didn’t expect this outcome, did you? Do you really think I have some reason to save this country?"

Elen refused without hesitation. The sharpness in her tone finally stirred anger in the guard standing nearby—she moved, as if to act.

"Stop."

Durol immediately shot the guard a glare sharp enough to kill.

Elen and the others were visibly startled by Durol’s reaction. Why was he acting like that toward a guard who was supposed to be on their side?

The Dual Goddesses had called Durol "a lover of spirits," but Elen and the others had no way of knowing that.

After confirming the guard had stepped back again in apology, Duran gave a brief pause, as if pondering, then turned to Elen.

"So, let's ask. If we weigh the royal family cursed and shunned by spirits against us... wouldn't the scales tip toward our side?"

"..."

"Tembar’s royalty treated sacred spirits with contempt—treated them like tools. If they’re already cursed, why should they keep receiving the spirits’ favor? I’ve heard the Vanklyft Family suffered terribly at their hands. Why go to such lengths...?"

Duran’s voice suddenly cut off mid-sentence. Elen flinched, her eyes snapping to his face—what happened?

His expression was a storm of fury, raw and terrifying. Seeing it, Elen recoiled, a shiver crawling up her spine.

Van and Kai, who had been waiting behind, stepped swiftly in front of Elen, blocking her from view.

Duval, noticing Elen’s state, forced himself to calm down—just one slow, deep breath, drawn in and released.

"...Ah, sorry. Really. The Tembarr family’s a real thorn in my side."

Chuckling, Duval offered Elen an apology.

"How about it, Princess Elen? We could help the Vanklyft Family, don’t you think?"

"..."

"Cut ties with those troublesome lot—why not come to us instead? We’d never stoop to their level. To us, spirits are sacred. That’s a given."

Smiling broadly, Duval said it like it was obvious.

But Elen, seeing that smile, felt something sour twist in her chest.

"...So that’s exactly what you told her too, huh."

If it goes well, I’ll give you Lovell as a reward.

Amiel’s actions, born from that expectation, were what set everything in motion.

I pretended to understand Amiel’s hatred and used it. Even if things went smoothly, it was as clear as day that this man would never forgive Amiel—blood that hated, after all.

You tried to steal my father from my family, didn’t you?

Elen narrowed her eyes at Duran and pointed at Amiel’s form, saying.

That child’s beyond saving now! The curse has already taken hold, twisting everything around it. The stagnant magic keeps collapsing in on itself, spiraling, and then exploding with nowhere to go!

You know what this is? Elen asked Duran.

"...Don't know."

Elen said, looking sadly at Duran, who showed a flicker of unease at her anger.

That child... became the core of the Monster Tempest...

Catastrophes so great they’ll be etched into history, breaking out across the land.

Right this moment, that calamity was about to unfold here.