The sound of giggling permeated the garden.
Lux watched as a little girl with reddish-brown hair happily ran around a field of flowers while being chased by an older girl with long pink hair.
The two seemed to be enjoying their little game, and everyone who was watching them couldn't help but smile, influenced by how happy they looked.
After he and Aurora were consumed by radiant purple flames, he found himself in a world where the young lady was still young and living a happy life with her adoptive family.
He watched as she grew up from a five-year-old girl to a ten-year-old girl.
Currently, the scenery that he was seeing now was when Aurora had just turned ten years old.
"Don't the two of them look adorable?" a beautiful lady with long, reddish-brown hair asked the Half-Elf with a smile.
Lux was surprised. He didn't sense her approaching him, and yet, here she was, standing beside him.
Also, this was the first time that someone had spoken to him while he was in this world. He knew that he was inside Aurora's memories, so he should be invisible to everyone.
But now, someone was actively talking to him, which made him wonder if the beautiful lady could really see him.
"I can see you, you know?" the beautiful lady giggled, which made Lux subconsciously take a step back.
"Y-You can see me?" Lux asked.
"Yes," the beautiful lady replied. "But in my eyes, you look like a spirit. Did you perhaps die and still have lingering attachments to this world?"
"I'm not a spirit," Lux answered.
"Then you're probably someone from the future."
"Eh?"
The beautiful lady shifted her gaze to the two girls who were playing tag in the flower garden. A smile could be seen on her face. Clearly, she loved her two daughters with all of her heart.
"You see, I'm an oracle of sorts," the beautiful lady said softly. "Today, I made a divination, and it told me to come to this place at this time to meet someone who will help change the Fate of my daughter… or perhaps, daughters?"
The beautiful lady then gave Lux a sidelong glance and smirked.
"Well, I guess you are that person," the beautiful lady commented. "I apologize for not introducing myself first. I am Bianca, Queen of Agartha. May I know who you are?"
Lux nodded. "Lux Von Kaizer. Just call me Lux."
"Lux?" Bianca smiled. "Your name means light. I see… so that's how it is."
The Queen of Agartha motioned for Lux to follow her, and he obliged.
They didn't walk far, only stepping into the shade of a tree overlooking the flower field, where the two girls were now lying.
"Those two girls are my daughters," Bianca said after sitting down on the grass. "The younger one is named Shayna, and the older one is named Aurora. Do you know? Aurora means Dawn. Her name refers to the time of the day when the sun is just about to rise from the horizon, giving light to the world.
"Since your name means light, it means that you are the light that would signify the start of a new dawn. If this is fate, then all I can say is that she is a romantic lady…"
Lux didn't know what to say, so he simply listened to the beautiful Queen as he leaned against the tree.
Perhaps, the beautiful lady knew that Lux didn't want to talk, so she took the initiative to do all the talking, simply saying whatever crossed her mind.
"You know, being an Oracle is a blessing and a curse," Queen Bianca stated. "I've seen many things, including things that I don't want to see. Do you know? I already know the exact date that I will die and what will happen after it? Very neat, right?"
Lux, who had just been listening, frowned.
"Since you know when you are going to die, can't you do anything about it?" Lux asked.
"Perhaps," Queen Bianca answered. "But it takes a lot of courage and willpower to defy Fate. I don't know if I have the courage or the willpower to do it. Still, if I manage to succeed, my only regret is that I won't be able to see my two daughters grow up."
A few minutes of silence passed between them before the beautiful Queen heaved a deep sigh.
"Lux, I have a favor to ask," Queen Bianca said softly. "Sometime in the distant future, Aurora will need to make a difficult choice. One which will force her to choose between what is right and what is easy. When that time comes, I want you to tell her that being her mother was one of the happiest moments of my life.
"I didn't regret raising her as my own, and even though we don't share the same blood, that doesn't change the fact that she is my precious daughter.
"She's my family, and I love her very much. Tell her that she doesn't need to blame herself for what happened. If she still feels guilty about it, tell her that I forgive her and that I will always be watching over her even though I am no longer in this world."
Lux glanced at the two girls who had started making flower wreaths and felt his heart ache, knowing that, in the future, the innocent smile of the pink-haired girl would disappear from her face.
"Understood," Lux replied. "I will relay your message to her."
Queen Bianca smiled. "Thank you. Meeting you here at this place and time gave me some peace of mind. Although it is regrettable, our time together will not last long."
At that moment, the Queen and the Half-Elf noticed the two girls running in their direction.
"Mama!" Shayna shouted as she ran towards her mother, carrying a wreath of flowers in her hands.
When she arrived at her mother's location, she placed the wreath of flowers on Queen Bianca's head before giving her a hug.
Queen Bianca kissed Shayna's cheeks before hugging her back.
"Mother, this is for you," Aurora said with a smile as she gently placed the wreath of flowers on her mother's head.
"Thank you, Aurora," Bianca said as she lightly pulled the pink-haired girl beside her to give her a kiss. "I love you."
Aurora smiled and hugged her adoptive mother, who meant the world to her.
Lux looked at this heartwarming scene with a smile, but his smile soon disappeared when the scenery changed.
Queen Bianca laid in a puddle of her own blood, and Shayna and Aurora were beside her, crying their hearts out.
The city around them was burning, and several monsters were chasing after the citizens, devouring those whom they managed to catch with their claws.
The Guards of the City were doing their best to hold back the horde of monsters, but some were still able to slip past their defenses.
High above the sky, King Septimius was fighting against a Calamity-Ranked Flying Monster that resembled a Wyvern, making him unable to assist those on the ground.
He was unaware that his wife was dying on the streets, while her two daughters were trying to drag her to safety.
Suddenly, an Argonaut-Ranked Tiger overpowered one of the Guards of the city and ran towards the dying Queen because it had smelled her rich and powerful blood.
Lux stepped forward and attacked the beast, but his spells only went past through it, leaving it unharmed.
"Sh*t!" Lux cursed as the Tiger ran past him and opened its massive jaws to devour the three helpless girls.
As if sensing that her two precious daughters were about to die, Queen Bianca's body glowed brightly.
A second later the sound of metal clashing against metal reverberated in the surroundings.
The beautiful lady held a sword in her hand, protecting her children who were behind her, ignoring the fact that her lifeblood flowed ceaselessly from the gaping wound in her chest.
"Stay… away… from… my… daughters!" Queen Bianca shouted as her sword erupted with a dazzling light that cut the monster in half.
She then fell on her knees, using her sword as a means to support herself to keep from falling..
"Mama!"
"Mother!"
Shayna and Aurora hugged Bianca, and their tears fell like rain.
Bianca wanted to embrace the two of them very much, but her strength was leaving her body at a rapid rate. She was also starting to feel cold as blood seeped through the corner of her lips.
Even so, her eyes that were filled with determination looked straight at the Half-Elf, who was standing in front of her.
"Please… promise… me," Queen Bianca said using the remaining strength in her body. "My… daughters. Please."
Lux knelt and clasped Queen Bianca's hands that were holding the handle of her sword.
"I will do my best to help them," Lux replied. "I promise."
Queen Bianca smiled and breathed a sigh of relief before her eyes slowly closed.
On that day, the Queen of Agartha died with a smile on her face.
No one knew that she was the first person who managed to defy Fate and allowed her two beloved daughters to survive in exchange for her own life.
