Witch's Daughter And The Devil's Son

Esther looked at Lady Tyra with a meaningful gaze, which the older woman understood. Esther wanted to help the Crown Prince but it would be impossible for her to make a move with many people around. The royal physicians were always by Prince Theron's side, and there were servants on standby inside the chamber as well. Esther would find it difficult to heal him without them noticing it.

Given their situation, those of their kind would normally refrain from using their powers in front of normal humans, even to those they trusted. It was the same case for Esther. She found it somewhat acceptable to have the Queen be aware she's not ordinary, but she didn't wish to flaunt her powers to others, as it would highly likely give away her true identity.

Not only that, the moment her abilities were made public, there would be a great change to her current status. It would not be surprising if the ladies she's friends with now would think of her as a bad person later on, or pretend to be nice but would avoid her. Humans tend to feel scared of people who are different from them, more so when it comes to people with powers. and she needed to keep her identity hidden to fulfill her promise to the Queen—that she would stay by her side for not less than five years.

King Esteban gently wiped away the tears from his wife's face to console her. "He will wake up. I believe he will wake up. He is our son and he won't give up so easily."

With red-rimmed eyes, Queen Theodora looked at the King. "I am scared…Our son…what if by morning…?"

"Nothing will happen. You should stay strong. He would not want to see his mother crying like this."

His words didn't manage to console her as an anguished mother's heart was never rational in the first place.

The King sighed as he turned to his wife's companion. "Tyra, take my wife to her chamber to rest."

Lady Tyra nodded and approached the Queen. "Your Majesty, let us go back."

"But Theron…"

King Esteban urged her once more, his tone firmer this time. "I will call for you as soon as he wakes up. Go rest."

The Queen could not ignore the King's order although he was her husband. With great reluctance, she stood up and left the chamber with Lady Tyra and Esther.

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Queen Theodora continued to silently weep even after returning to her chamber, and Lady Tyra did her best to console her. Esther didn't know what to say as she was just waiting for the moment when she could go back to the residence of the Crown Prince.

Late into the night, Queen Theodora finally got tired from crying and fell into a restless sleep. Only after the entire Queen's residence quieted down did Lady Tyra manage to have a private talk with Esther.

"Your Eminence, are you planning to go to the Crown Prince?"

Esther nodded. "I have no other option."

"Will you be alright with using your powers in the palace?" Lady Tyra asked. "Unlike in the forest, there are more eyes here…"

"Though I have decided to not use them, it seems like this royal family wants me to go back on my decision again and again."

Lady Tyra lowered her head in front of Esther. "Your Eminence, not just the royal family but even I will be grateful to you if you will take action yourself to save the Crown Prince. I have watched Prince Theron grow up, and he is a person with a heart as good as Her Majesty. This kingdom needs him…and I believe Her Majesty will be truly heartbroken if the worst happens to that poor child."

Esther smiled. She did not need persuasion, as she had intended to save him the moment she heard that his condition wasn't improving.

"Wait for me here and look after Her Majesty."

After saying those words, Esther left the Queen's chamber and made her way out of the Queen's palace through the doors at the back used by the royal servants.

Esther had already been staying in the Royal Palace of Megaris for several months, and she was aware of which routes to take to avoid the patrol of the royal guards. It did not take her long to reach Prince Theron's residence, which was of course more heavily guarded than usual. It seemed like the King had ordered for the knights to be more vigilant; after all, the fact that the Crown Prince was injured made him a perfect target for those people with sinister schemes against him. However, the King couldn't have factored that his orders would be useless in front of someone like Esther.

Standing outside of the Crown Prince's residence, the young woman played with her fingers and invisible energy emitted from them,  spreading slowly across the residence. Several seconds later, silence enveloped the place. Everyone, from the guards to the servants, and even the physicians present inside the residence, had all drifted to sleep.

Esther walked inside the residence without any restrictions. Along the hallways, she found people unconscious on the carpeted floor, and she could only murmur an apology as she walked past their bodies. She quickly reached Prince Theron's chamber, where she found the royal physicians asleep as well due to her spell. Esther went towards the bed and chose to sit on the edge of the mattress. She observed Prince Theron's pale face with the help of the light coming from the bedside lamp.

'He looks like he's dying...'

Not only was his skin sickly pale, but his lips were also dry and chapped. There were purplish bruises under his eyes, and his breaths were so weak and shallow, his chest seemed to be not moving at all. The young man had seemingly lost the youthful and hot-blooded energy he had been exuding before, and it was painful to see how his once charming face had turned into something struggling to keep ahold of life.

'How could he turn out like this so fast? Is his injury really this terrible or…?'

Just a day before, he was a proud young man whose presence was enough to make her feel intimidated, to the point she even deemed him annoying for being able to make her feel that way. Earlier, she was still cursing him for being a rascal, and now, she was even thinking it's alright for him to continue being a rascal as long as he would just wake up..

'It has been so long since someone has made me feel like this…'

With a determined look on her face, Esther placed her hand on his forehead and closed her eyes. Invisible energy slowly trickled out of her palm, yet unlike before, this energy was as gentle as water. After a while, she opened her caramel-coloured eyes and worry could be seen in them.

'His life force is weakening with every passing second. The physicians are right to say that if he doesn't wake up by the morning, he really won't be waking up. An ordinary healing spell will not be able to save him.' Esther sighed helplessly and stared at his face. 'I should have started healing you last night. I should have risked it. I didn't know…Am I too late? But… I can't let you die.'

Esther closed her eyes again and tried to think of a way to prolong his life. Her powers were related to the energy of nature, and if she was going to save the young prince, it was the same as opposing nature since it was akin to pulling a dying person from the arms of death. She could not think of any ordinary way—

'Unless I share with him my own life force.'

Esther opened her eyes and looked at the pale young man with a troubled expression. She could not recall any instance that someone of her kind had ever done such a thing such as sharing their lifeforce with another, but she remembered seeing it done once in an ancient scroll. Sharing her lifeforce wasn't difficult but…

'Will it be possible to share a part of my soul with this weak human? Can he bear it?'

After a few more moments of hesitation, Esther let out a shaky sigh. Prince Theron would die if she does nothing, but if she were to give him a part of her soul, then the possibility of him living through the night would be higher. It was worth the risk.

"This is the first time and possibly the only time that something like this will ever happen in the history of this continent. I do not know if you can survive with this, but I had no other way to save you. At least, with this, the chances of you living will be higher."

Esther cupped his face in her hands and lowered her head. His skin felt icy cold, and even his lips felt like ice against hers. The moment that Esther let out a breath, it was as if time stopped. A strange white haze seemingly escaped her lips as she poured in a part of her soul into him.