The year-end celebration marked the closing of another year.
Russell concluded his speech, all while signaling the start of festivities, and scanned the expansive hall, exhaling softly in disappointment.
"...As anticipated, she didn't attend."
Though expected, her absence still weighed heavily on him.
"Your Majesty."
An Imperial knight approached, whispered in Russell's ear, and saw his expression soured at the report.
"Shouldn't all matters concerning the Imperial Family be relayed to the commander-in-chief first?"
"Yes, but seeing it firsthand might benefit Your Majesty."
Russell trailed the knight, visibly unsettled.
They arrived at a garden adjacent to the party venue.
"Pardon me, Your Majesty, this way."
"What in...!"
The knight gestured toward a tree in the garden, where a figure hung lifelessly.
"Fetch Duke Proud immediately, lower the body, and identify the woman."
Despite the emperor's command, the knight hesitated, causing Russell's brow to furrow in discontent.
"Your Majesty, we have already identified the woman. That woman is Lady Ilya Titonsser."
"IIlya Titonsser? The lady backed by Duke Honeywell?"
"Yes, it is precisely her."
Russell observed the hanging woman.
With the Duke of Honeywell's patronage and debuting at the Imperial Palace, why would she end her life here?
Russell suspected foul play behind what appeared to be a simple suicide.
Just then, another imperial knight dashed toward him, urgency in his voice.
"Your Majesty!"
"What's the commotion? Spare no discomfort for the---"
"Your Majesty, you must return to the banquet at once! Right this second, the Commander-in-Chief---Haaa! Duke Honeywell---Gah!"
[TL/N: Ragged breathing from sprinting.]
The knight, his face drawn and weary, stood speechless before Russell.
Without waiting for a proper explanation, Russell pressed forward.
The scene that greeted him at the party was one of utter chaos.
Duke Honeywell stood accused of attempting to murder Duke Proud and despite his disbelief, Russell found all the evidence and noble testimonies pointing to one conclusion.
"Haa... Detain Duke Honeywell. His trial for the attempted murder of Duke Proud will commence after the celebration."
With this decision, Russell swiftly concluded the year-end festivities. As Duke Proud and the assembled nobles departed, he noticed a lone figure remaining amidst the turmoil. Rose Honeywell, the one he had longed to see, albeit under different circumstances.
"For now, Lady Honeywell, return to the manor. I'll dispatch an envoy to Wells immediately. We'll ensure he doesn't face severe punishment at the noble assembly."
Though Rose stumbled, she bowed gracefully and exited the banquet.
Russell couldn't tear his gaze away from her breathtaking presence, even as she shuddered and walked away blindly.
Rose is the vessel for Abaddon's soul.
The revelation from Wells weighed heavily on Russell.
"Rose Honeywell... I hear she hasn't returned to the manor."
When the report came in that Rose's carriage had left the capital, Russell felt as though his heart had stopped.
Urgently, he made his way to the stables and mounted his horse.
Where could Rose be if not at Honeywell Manor?
The capital sprawled endlessly, but as he contemplated, the knight who had departed with him came racing back, his horse in a frenzy.
"Your Majesty! She's outside the capital! We found the young lady's carriage! The Honeywell family's carriage has left the city!"
"Damn it! How did she end up there?!"
Russell spurred the horse forward just as heavy snow began to blanket the landscape under the pitch-black sky.
"Rose!! Rose!!! Where are you? Rose!"
His voice echoed into the winter night as Russell, now outside the capital, called out desperately.
The silence was deafening, broken only by his frantic cries.
"Rose!"
The horse, seemingly responding to Russell's urgency, suddenly bolted, forcing him to struggle with the reins.
"Where are you going?! Stop!"
Despite his efforts, the horse refused to halt until it had run a considerable distance.
Finally slowing down, Russell turned to find the sight of the Imperial Palace looming in the distance.
"You've gone too far, old friend. Why have you decided not to listen to me now?"
With a pat on the horse's head, Russell noticed the end of a tall cliff ahead, and something caught his eye at its base.
"What's this---?"
Buried beneath the snow was something that sent a shiver down Russell's spine.
With mounting dread, he dismounted and approached cautiously.
As he drew closer, the truth struck him like a blow to the gut.
"Rose!!"
It was Rose, the very person he had been desperately searching for.
Russell dug frantically through the snow, revealing her broken and lifeless form, blood staining the once-pristine snow.
"No... Rose...! Rose!!!"
Russell's trembling hands tenderly brushed against her cold, pale face.
"No... Rose...!"
After wrapping her cold, fragile form in his red cloak, he cradled her gently, mounting the horse with her in his arms.
"Let's go. I'll take you back to the palace."
As he rode his horse toward the palace, Russell couldn't shake off the memory of what Wells had revealed to him.
"It's all because of Elliot Proud! He knows everything! He's always known."
Russell clenched his jaw, his thoughts consumed by Rose.
"Rose... We know what kind of power is hidden inside her! Obviously, Rose...!"
His amethyst eyes glinted with determination.
"Elliot Proud. How dare you?"
The horse galloped faster toward the palace.
Upon his return to the Imperial Palace with Rose bundled tightly in a cloak, Russell was greeted by the doctor attending to Wells.
"Your Majesty!"
Russell stared silently at the doctor, who immediately fell to his knees and prostrated himself.
"I'm sorry, Your Majesty! I did my best, but... Duke Honeywell... Duke Honeywell--- He---!"
The doctor couldn't bring himself to continue.
Russell, his expression unreadable, uttered a single sentence before turning away.
"It's alright. Everything will be resolved now."
"How so, Your Majesty?"
The doctor looked up, but Russell had already departed.
"Your Majesty, what's going on?"
Russell encountered a knight in the palace hallway.
With determination in his voice, Russell instructed him while holding Rose's cloak tightly.
"Summon that Duke Proud immediately and tell him to bring that mirror."
"A mirror, Your Majesty?"
"Yes, he will understand."
"Understood!"
The knight hurried off, and Russell carried Rose to his bedroom, gently laying her on the bed.
"My Rose, please wait here for a moment."
After planting a brief kiss on Rose's cold, lifeless cheek, Russell pushed aside a bookshelf, revealing a hidden passage.
Navigating through the darkness, he reached a cave and retrieved an old holy sword that appeared to be discarded by the world, buried in the ground.
With ease, he drew the sword, knowing it recognized its rightful owner.
"I suppose breaking the mirror with this sword will suffice. Perhaps mirrors work the same way and it would have pierced the vessel."
Returning to the bedroom, Russell left with the holy sword in one hand and Rose in the other.
He headed straight to the banquet hall, where he gently laid Rose down in a corner.
Just then, the door swung open, and Elliot entered.
"Your Majesty, this is remarkable. I never expected you to find out that I've had the mirror with me."
"Indeed, did you bring it?"
Without a word, Elliot presented the mirror.
It appeared ordinary, though its decoration showed signs of wear and tear.
Russell's gaze turned cold as he addressed Elliot.
"Break it."
"I beg your pardon? Your Majesty, do you not understand the significance of this item? It's rather odd for you to ask me to bring it..."
"Isn't this what you wanted?"
Elliot fell silent.
He then hurled the mirror to the ground with force.
With a sharp shatter, the mirror fragmented, unleashing a beastly roar that reverberated through the hall.
Russell surveyed the broken pieces, his expression grim.
"Let me show you firsthand the hell you're about to unleash."
He retrieved the holy sword from the floor, approached Rose, and pulled back his cloak.
"Rose?"
Elliot's voice rang out behind him, tinged with surprise.
Without hesitation, Russell plunged the holy sword into Rose's heart.
It required strength to pierce through cold, hard flesh with the blunt sword.
Turning to face Elliot, Russell spoke calmly.
"I wonder... Can you contain the monsters, like the heroes of old?"
A black liquid began to ooze from Rose's body, swiftly soaking into the fragmented mirror. Simultaneously, a powerful earthquake shook the Imperial City.
The earthquake's intensity made standing difficult.
"Now, witness it with your own eyes, Elliot Proud. See how this world descends into hell, all thanks to your gratuitous efforts."
With Russell's words, Abaddon's seal was broken.
Elliot was the first to fall, pierced by Abaddon's scorpion-like tail emerging from the awakened body.
As Elliott perished, flames engulfed the Imperial Palace, echoing with the screams of nobles and servants trapped within.
After dropping the holy sword, Russell tenderly cradled Rose.
"I promised to take you to the sea... I failed, Rose. I'm sorry."
Russell glanced up at the red sky, reminiscent of the festival's fireworks.
"Since the day I met you, I've been unable to choose anyone else."
He looked back at Rose.
"I can't bear the world without you."
Russell kissed Rose's lips delicately and lovingly.
"I love you, Rose. Let's remain together in this frozen time."
In the 672nd year of the Imperial calendar, Emperor Russell Whittle van Tristan destroyed the Tristan Empire, ending the world in flames as he met his end in the frozen arms of his lover.
The sight of the world engulfed in fire made the being sigh.
"I thought he'd be a wise and benevolent leader... Haa... I see now. A child blinded by love."
Beside the fiery planet, a serene, beautiful world appeared, offering a chance for a new beginning.
"I cherished this world... Now, we must start anew and hope to right the wrongs."
With resolve, he contemplated turning back time to this moment.
His hands became occupied as he made his choice.
Crafting an identical world wasn't an easy task, but eventually it was accomplished.
It mirrored the world before the monster's seal was broken, plunging it into a sea of flames. And now, a crucial decision had to be made.
"To prevent history from repeating, I must imbue a soul with memories of the previous world. This time, don't allow the monster's seal to break by losing your beloved."
In an instant, a faint light flickered on the scorched planet, drawing attention despite its diminutive size.
Regret and compassion welled up in the being's wise eyes.
"You... were there."
It is time to reconsider my choice.
"Very well. I'll grant you a chance."
The faint light seemed fragile and on the brink of extinguishing. He delicately transferred it to the nascent world, ensuring its preservation.
"After all, a rose is lovelier in full bloom than wilted."
Thankfully, the soul permeated the world.
I eagerly await how this tiny light will shape its destiny.
"In this realm, strive not to wither but to flourish, Rose Honeywell."
-The End.