Before he left for the Zion duchy for one final mission, Varian had to resolve two things. The more important of the two was of course Isadora.
It didn't feel right to keep the matter and the person waiting.
So, when Sonya opened her eyes, she saw the handsome young man who was supposed to be her brother-in-law.
"Heuk!" She jumped onto her feet before she staggered and fell on her face.
The haughty princess who prided her elegance and beauty cried inwardly at the unsightly display.
Varian didn't help her up, contrary to what he expected. Instead, he seemed to be enjoying her embarass herself.
'He isn't my related to my sister at all. And if he is, then…why the hell did she like him in the first place?'
Rubbing her hair, the pink-skinned princess slowly got up and looked at him with wary eyes.
With a snap of his fingers, Varian turned the trees nearby into an elegant chair and a rough stool. He sat in the elegant one calmly and asked her to be seated, with a kind expressio.
Sonya's lips twitched at his blatant bias.
"I'd rather stand," She snorted and her gaze darted, "Where is my…where is she?"
"I'm not letting her meet you until I get some things right."
"It doesn't matter, does it. Nothing is going to change. I've seen her. I don't care if she kills me. But I want to see her properly before I go."
Varian shook his head in exasperation. "If I can stop her from killing you right away, I sure as hell can prevent her from killing you…as long as I like."
Sonya raised an eyebrow and her voice turned cold, as if she was the one insulted. "Aren't you overestimating yourself? To even think you can go against the legendary princes—"
Varian raised his hand. "Yeah, yeah. Get your brain out of the gutter and think, what do you know about me to think I'm overestimating your sister? And that you're not underestimating me?"
Sonya wanted to refute his insulting remarks right away but she couldn't utter a single reasonable sentence.
Indeed, she knew nothing about this man. He's powerful, yes. But nothing compared to his sister. Yet, if he were to be her brother-in-law, then there must be something about him.
Taking a deep breath, Sonya sat on the stool and started in a soft voice.
"My memories of that day are blurred, but someone visited us. I overheard his conversation with my mother.
He said my sister was in danger. I was worried. So I sneaked out. I can't clearly remember what happened afterwards.
My Sister found me…but I couldn't properly move…and I…"
Beads of sweat rolled down Sonya's forehead and her lips trembled as she struggled to continue.
"I watched like a puppet, frozen, unable to do anything as they all attacked my sister. She could've escaped. But someone was holding me hostage, I don't know who…"
Her voice cracked several times and her nails dug into her palms, blood slowly dripping out of her hands and sliding down her thighs.
With his soul power active, Varian listened to her words with a serious expression.
It was eerily similar to his own past.
A fateful night. Death of a loved one. Unclear memories.
And…
"My Sister lost...and they spared me. I can't remember their faces. The only thing I remember was my mother rushing to rescue. It was already too late by then. My sister has…"
There was an unmistakable grief in her voice, it came from the depths of her soul and before she even knew it, tears were flowing down her cheeks.
It was something that should've been unacceptable to the arrogant princess, but she couldn't stop sobbing as the memory flashed in her eyes.
"I…I am the reason she died. If only I…if only I…"
Varian closed his eyes and let out a deep breath. He could see his past self saying the exact same words, crying just like this.
With a tap of his finger, his soul power, mixed with the power of slivers, shot into Sonya's head.
At the unexpected move in her vulnerable state, Sonya couldn't react.
Varian's power broke into the deepest part of her memories and got blocked by a far stronger power.
If it was before, he'd have needed to reach a higher rank in the mind path.
But the power of slivers helped drill a hole in the large wall and he sneaked into the memories of that day.
That power tried to destroy these memories but if it did so, there was a risk of killing Sonya who was heavily traumatized after the incident. So, it just sealed away the memories.
If the power really tried, it might have suceeded in deleting the memories.
But with the assumed death of Isadora, it might've been deemed unnecessary.
From the inside, Varian quickly cracked the memory seal.
Sonya's eyes widened as familiar memories flooded her mind. Her heart beat stopped for a moment before it raced through the roof.
Her eyes widened and she paled purple.
"R-Romanov…fed me what? Daphne also drugged Reina…and why is Senior Zara attacking her own best friend…and M-Mother! She's the one who killed Sister?!"
A bleak aura eminated from the princess and she fell silent like a corpse.
For a few minutes, she remained silent with her eyes closed. Then, she stiffly raised her head and looked at Varian with a pleading gaze.
"Can you please kill me? I…I don't want to stain her hands with my blood. I don't have anything to give you in return but for her sake, kill me and remove me from her thoughts.
She doesn't deserve to be betrayed by so many people. And she definitely doesn't deserve to be betrayed by me.
Whatever state I'm in is no excuse."
Varian did not move from his chair.
"I'm sorry, it must be too much," With a resignated sigh, Sonya gathered her life essence and was about to explode it.
Her skin cracked and her existence was going to end when a foreign force blocked her actions.
"Isadora, you can check her memories and choose to act." Varian said out loud and his figure vanished.
A beautiful woman in black clothes appeared in the sky and looked at Sonya with a struggling expression.
Her soul power swept into Sonya's spirit and unlike the other times, this time, she could sense the anamoly.
Whatever tampered with her soul was stronger than her! Without Varian using his sliver powers to probe, she would've never discovered it!
Isadora's brows frowned as she noticed some unbearable truths.
Her mother did betray her. But there was someone collobarating with her.
And out of the two girls she raised, Daphne fell in love with a man who led her to drug and push Reina into a comatose state where her soul was tampered.
Both Sonya and Reina were controlled by a similar power—a natal treasure that seemed to have a great control over souls.
"…Martial Saint Kong."
One of the three peak rank 9s of the Pala kingdom, an absolute powerhouse at the top of the pyramid.
And the man who's going to die an ugly death.
