Dimensional Descent

Rychard looked nothing like a man who had just been standing at the scene of a bloody crime. His robes were a deep violet, almost black, embroidered by a deep dark gold color. On his lapel, the symbol of the Viola sat, intertwining in flowers and vines, while his tall collars were embroidered with twin horned dragons.

When this sort of outfit was matched with his noble disposition, his cascading black hair and his deep violet eyes, he gave off the feeling of a refined, handsome and confident gentleman.

Rychard had a light smile on his face but it froze somewhat when he saw the crying Yuri. He couldn't have something like this ruining his wedding.

"Judging by the situation, it seems it would be best if the two of you just stayed here."

Originally, Rychard didn't find there to be any problem with allowing Yuri and Savahn to attend. A wife without friends would raise more questions than answers, it was already odd enough that Aina had no family background to speak of.

However, if he had to choose between that small oddity and Yuri leaking tears, it was obvious which he would choose.

Yuri immediately wanted to protest, but Rychard had already snapped his fingers. Several of the maids, one of whom had Sixth Dimensional strength, came forward.

Seeing such a scene, Rychard couldn't help but feel a bit of heartache. It was a good thing that the Three Pillar Galaxy had been at peace for a very long time now, or else the Viola family might very well fall due to this choice of theirs.

Losing 20% of their Sixth Dimensional forces in a single sweep was absolutely unheard of. Even now, Rychard could hardly believe it. He was able to ignore the troubling feeling this caused him because he was simply too excited to take Aina as his own.

But ultimately, women were just women. One day he would grow bored of Aina and this trouble would come back around full circle. By then, he wouldn't be able to ignore it any longer.

There was good news, though. They had managed to capture him alive, so they could more easily control Aina in this way. Also, there was definitely something special about Miel and his blood. It was even possible for them to strengthen their Lineage Factor in the future. Should they succeed, it would all be worth it.

'It's fine, the area was too closed off. We should be able to keep this a secret for at least a decade. By then, we would have already recovered.'

Seeing that the maids had come back, Yuri and Savahn could only accept their fate in silence.

"Aina, it's time." Rychard's expression softened.

Aina nodded and stood. Due to her current stature and the shoes she wore, she was even a small hint taller than Rychard now, something that made his lip twitch. But, he buried it deep within. Today was his day, he wouldn't let anything stain it.

"Hold on a moment!"

Rychard frowned but Savahn continued to speak quickly

"It's just a small adjustment. I only want to wish my friend good luck and fortune."

Savahn appeared before Aina and helped her to fix the last wrinkles of her dress.

"Do you really want to know?" Savahn asked.

Aina blinked before remembering what they had been talking about. Then, she nodded.

"My grandparents died. My parents died. My siblings died. I tolerate the things you've done to me… Because I have no one else. So yes… I guess I am lacking backbone. If I was more like Leonel, maybe things would be easier for me."

"…"

Aina remained silent for a long while.

"… No one else…?"

Savahn let Aina go and returned to the couch to sit by Yuri's side.

In silence, Aina walked out of the room with Rychard by her side. She shuffled forward in silence, seemingly not hearing the small attempts at conversation that he was making.

"… We will have to wait until after the Selection for our Honeymoon, but I have amazing things planned. You must not have seen a lot of the Dimensional Verse yet, right? There are all sorts of extraordinary places.

"For example in the Muratha Sector, there's a world formed entirely of a thick mass of water. It's ice caps have such a dense amount of Water Force that when it snows, it precipitates Force Crystals. Every 10 000 years, after enough accumulation, it will enter a Blizzard state where the entire planet becomes encased in a thick layer of ice. If you're lucky enough, there's a chance that it could snow Pure Force Crystals…"

Rychard continued to babble on but when he looked toward Aina's side profile to catch a glimpse of her otherworldly features, he almost snapped. She wasn't paying attention at all.

Rychard had always been good at controlling his emotions, plotting and scheming in the background. But, with the months he spent trying to court Aina, only for her to insult and belittle him at every turn, his patience had long since been wearing thin.

He was truly about to snap, but his reason took over once again. Taking deep breaths, he closed his eyes. Soon… Soon.

It was then that Aina suddenly spoke.

"You have the smell of my father's blood on you."

Rychard's gaze flickered. But, he had just calmed himself, he wouldn't lose it again so quickly.

"Since you know then there's even less to talk about. Be obedient and he will be fine. Step out of line, and he won't be. It's that simple."

"You believe that I care for his safety enough to do every and anything you say?"

Usually such a question would have some sarcasm laced into it, but Aina's tone was indifferent and almost spoken as though she was genuinely asking.

Rychard's expression couldn't help but change after hearing this. This… Wasn't how things were supposed to go?

"My father has always raised me to be a weapon to seek revenge for my mother. Anything that compromises that isn't something that he will accept. Even if he dies, so what? Do you think that this is enough to control me?"

Aina's gaze finally turned toward Rychard, but when their eyes met, the latter felt as though his soul had left his body. The cold chill and the scent of death had practically grabbed onto his nose.

Aina looked away just as quickly. "I am doing this so that I can go to the Void Palace. At the same time, you will receive the social credit of being my husband not to mention a stake in my future. Don't do unnecessary things and make me look down on you even more."

Aina continued to walk forward, her gaze becoming somewhat vacant once more. She still couldn't quite grasp Savahn's meaning… But it should have been simple, no?