Valencia and Kael returned in silence, yet he held her as they mounted on the horse. Since Jeron stayed as a guest, he saw them and hurried to Valencia’s side.
“My great-granddaughter, what did this idiot do?” he questioned.
Ezrael coughed, clearing his throat.
“My son can be incompetent, but he for sure did nothing to betray her trust… so don’t make this about you—”
“Say the bastard that never told me that you guys found my great-granddaughter! I’ve searched everywhere for them!” Jeron snapped. His back cracked as he groaned. “Argh! My back!”
Valencia hopped down and grabbed Jeron’s hands.
“You should stay indoors… if you keep moving at this age, you’ll just have a harder time,” she claimed.
Jeron stared at her eyes, green as the moss in the dark swamp. He smiled and patted her hand.
“My sweet great-granddaughter… seeing you is like seeing your mother. Your mother’s eyes and hair matched you in every way…” Jeron whispered, tears falling.
Valencia’s fingers trembled as she forced a laugh.
“Yes… and every day, she waited for Father… only to tell me that the only thing that I have in common with him is the stars in my eyes…”
Jeron grabbed her cheek and pulled her chin up.
“My dear great-grandchild… that’s what made her fall in love with him to begin with,” Jeron added. Valencia smiled and nodded. “But he was quite an idiot. Maybe more than this young man… he didn’t know how to deceive my granddaughter. He only knew how to be too honest and too good.”
She laughed despite tears running endlessly. Jeron watched her wipe her own tears and sighed in relief.
“Thank you…” she whispered.
Kael paused and averted his gaze. I’m such a scum for keeping this from her… I should have known better. He clenched his fists.
Nuredus looked at him and patted his shoulder softly. Kael raised his eyes.
“What matters is that she knows now. Son, you have so much to learn about ladies,” she claimed.
Jeron held Valencia’s hand firmly and locked eyes with her.
“If those bastards treat you badly, come home… I don’t care how long… the Elyane will always have you back,” Jeron stated.
Valencia’s lips trembled as they curved into a smile. She nodded.
“I will… great-grandfather,” she replied.
Jeron smiled and hugged her tightly. He kissed her forehead and closed his eyes.
“I love you, my great-grandchild…”
Jeron had left Izekiah's dukedom. Valencia sat in her bedroom, refusing to eat. Kael wouldn’t allow any maids to enter unless she requested one.
“You have to eat… if you starve yourself, what may come—?”
“Just tell His Majesty… that if he refuses to let me join you in the Black Forest, he would have my dead body…” Valencia challenged.
Kael’s face creased as he bent a knee before her.
“Why do you care so little about your body?” he wondered.
Valencia looked at him, her hollow eyes lingering in silence.
“Kael, before I met you, I had no one… by my side. I ran through the marketplace, making sure no one was chasing me. I made sure no one… knew who I was,” she replied firmly. Kael paused. “Until I met you… everything that I tried to achieve in silence, in the darkness, in the slums… you shattered all that just because… you needed my guidance.”
“Valencia—”
“I threw all of that away to be here… to be your guide. When you knew that I still had a family waiting for me to come home…” Valencia argued. She paused and stared at him.
“I know… I have no excuses for what I decided to do…” he whispered. Then he cupped her cheek and pulled her closer. “I did bring you here with the intention of getting your guidance at first… but now it’s different.”
Valencia gritted her teeth behind her lips. She locked eyes with him before closing her eyes.
“Just… don’t go until His Majesty accepts me going with you…” she muttered. She turned away and jumped onto the bed, slamming her head onto the pillow.
Kael watched her and sighed in frustration. He stood and walked out of the room, sleeping in his own bed. Nuredus, observing from the hallway, shook her head.
“My incompetent son…” she muttered before retreating into her room.
That night, Vrastos pulled Valencia into the Void Dimension. He made sure she learned to breathe properly, maintaining her stability. After hours in the dimension, practicing breathing made Valencia upset. She glared at Vrastos.
“Is this all you’re going to teach me? To breathe?” she questioned.
He chuckled, relaxing on the void balls. His head tilted down to his shoulder.
“What’s wrong, little vessel? Need some exercise to breathe longer?” he teased.
Valencia frowned. Athesia sighed as she sipped her tea.
“Vrastos, your little child has little patience—”
“Shut up! She’s not my child!”
“Maybe make her understand why she needs to have patience,” Athesia continued.
Valencia groaned, dropping her hands and legs on the endless floor.
“I don’t have that little patience…”
“You do,” Vrastos and Athesia answered together.
Valencia pouted, crossing her arms as she lay down.