"Very well and comfortable, dad. You already know, Sky is like a child. It's easy to make him do what I want." Stella sighed, dismissing yet another lie she told her father as she waited for her nail polish to dry. It wasn't the first time she lied to her father, but this time felt very different and difficult.
"Do you want me to come? Erendor is leaving for Nyxoria for a while, you can come to Solaria during that time, I can talk to him." Stella swallowed, considering what Sky's and her departure from the kingdom at the same time could lead to. She shook her head and replied to her father sadly, "Dad, Sky already left for a mission. If I leave the palace too, people will start talking." It was pretty annoying that Stella was the only one who cared about the issue of the kingdom.
Not hearing anything from her father, she waited for a while before she asked to make sure, "Dad?" to confirm he was still on the line.
"Stella, I don't understand, dear. Did he leave you alone for a mission, even though you just got married two days ago? What kind of mission is this? If it's so important, why aren't you involved?" For a moment, she felt a comforting smile spread across her face at her father's words. Although everyone knew that if there was a mission, Stella should be there, hearing it from her father brought her a sense of happiness she couldn't hide. "I..." rolling her eyes, she stopped using the light to dry her nails, now confident they were dry, and stood up, walking towards the balcony and cursing herself for protecting Sky once again. "I didn't go because Edden could be there too."
While Radius couldn't comment on this, Stella this time focused her attention elsewhere, fixing her eyes on the area prepared for her trainings. Brandon was overseeing the workers. Without even trying to control her racing heart, she easily changed her dress to comfortable training clothes. As she sighed, realizing she should stop using magic for everything, her father must have interpreted it differently and said worriedly, "Don't worry, baby! The moment I'll find my balance I'm telling you, even if the universe goes to war, I won't let them take you. You can come back home than." Blinking and trying to focus back on her father, her eyes still couldn't leave Brandon.
"I'm fine, dad. Sky is my friend, and I'm really comfortable here. Even though it's not where I want to be, there's definitely no situation that should worry you." As they ended their conversation, Stella looked at herself in the mirror for a while. Of course, these weren't clothes people would typically expect a princess to wear. But Stella wasn't just any princess; they needed to remember she was a warrior too. If they didn't recall, Stella would remind them in her own way.
Quickly leaving the room and signaling the guards who followed her not to, Stella tried to gather her hair into a ponytail. Despite her trembling hands making it difficult, she managed and finally stepped out of the palace, heading towards Brandon. Although the knight had not yet noticed her, he saw the workers turning one by one to look at something behind him and frowned, turning his head in the direction they were looking to understand what was so distracting.
Sighing as he realized it was the princess approaching with a smile, he couldn't help but feel a pang in his chest. Yesterday's conversation was still on his mind, and he knew there was nothing he could do to lighten her burden. Despite this, he had stayed up all night, preparing himself for his encounter with Edden. Even if it wasn't going happen right away, Brandon thought it would be beneficial to be prepared, so he had done his usual training but four times harder than usual. He knew it wasn't necessary, though he was ready to use whatever helped him clear his mind.
"Hi," Stella's murmur brought him back to the present, but when his eyes met her amber ones, he found himself lost in his thoughts again. How could she look so noble and beautiful even when dressed so casually? Looking at her tiredly, it was hard to comprehend how she made so many difficult things look so easy. While Stella still looked at him expectantly, Brandon responded with a small nod and turned to the workers who seemed to be falling into Stella's gaze. In a voice almost akin to a roar, he said, "Either get back to work or become my punching bags for today."
Stella frowned at this reaction, involuntarily lowering her head. Why did this man's reactions affect her so much? Who was he, anyway? As Brandon turned to her with a different and unreadable expression than the one he just showed to the workers, Stella, like a fool, forgot her previous hurt and cheered up again. "Is there anything I can help you with, Princess?"
Spoke a little too soon you idiot, she thought to herself as her face fell once more. "Princess?" Even though her voice was faint, it wasn't faint enough to escape Brandon's sharp ears.
"Stella, I can't respond to you with familiarity in front of everyone. You have to remember that you're a princess, and I'm a knight and also a commander." Why did he feel the need to make such an explanation now? As she nodded, her expression didn't improve even a bit; in fact, it deepened. Brandon, examining the fairy, tried to suppress the rising guilt within him. Thinking, "I'm just doing my duty," didn't help, but he continued to do so anyway.
"I thought I could do some training. My muscles have become too relaxed, and I feel constantly tired." Brandon shook his head while indicating the ongoing work. "I'm afraid it's not ready yet, but if you want, I can take you to our training area. It's empty today since there are no training sessions." Stella nodded enthusiastically and thanked him with a genuine smile. Although her smile nearly drove Brandon out of his mind, he forced himself not to show it. Turning to the workers, he spoke in a stern voice about the consequences of slacking off.
Their lips had remained sealed, not parting even slightly to utter a single word. Stella wrestled with guilt, thinking she had talked too much the day before. But the biggest reason she had let herself go and spoken so freely was Brandon's sincerity. And now, here was a man standing beside her, his emotions guarded by a wall. Even though Stella's feet were commanded to move forward, she only wanted to turn around and run to her room. She wished she had never tried to talk to him in the first place. Had she scared him? But why would that be? Everyone already knew how obsessed Edden was with her, didn't they? Maybe Brandon had just found out—what difference would it make, though?
Brandon effortlessly opened the huge door of a green building and held it open for Stella. As she walked inside, she couldn't help but marvel at the thickness of the door. Not even Solaria's three suns were protected by such a thick door! She turned her head to look at Brandon; he didn't seem to be struggling. She silently thanked him as she walked past, already knowing he wouldn't respond.
For a fairy like Stella, who thrived on light, being forced to live on such a gloomy planet was absolute torture. Her attempts to draw power from the moon were not going very well at the moment, but Stella's reserves had already started to fill up. And she was grateful even for that. The desolation and oppressiveness of the room they entered instantly bothered Stella, and she turned to Brandon, expecting a small explanation because there was no one and nothing in the room except for the two of them. It was an empty room. Artificial environment, thought Stella, and just then, as if to confirm her thoughts, Brandon made a screen appear in the middle of the room. Alfea had many rooms like this. Expecting so many fairies to wait for a potential war and then practice would be foolish, so the girls trained in rooms like these every week, using their powers. Some were subjected to multiple tests under supervision; people who wanted to protect themselves and their loved ones, like Stella and her friends.
"If you don't need anything else, princess, I should return to my duties."
These words were enough to make Stella forget about Alfea and her friends for a while. She found herself walking toward Brandon instantly, with a surge of hurt feelings. "Why are you treating me like this? Did I bother you yesterday?" Brandon tried to keep his face steady and calm, not wanting to share even a fraction of his thoughts with Stella and worry her further. It was because of yesterday, she was right, because of Edden Renoux. The fact that that man could come at any moment to take Stella made Brandon unintentionally angry. A part of him told himself he was doing this just for Sky, but that part was so small that Brandon was smart enough not to fall for it.
As Stella grew increasingly silent and annoyed by the lack of response, she felt her throat dry up in the face of the man's sternness. She struggled to understand why he was so cold towards her, a part of her wanting to scream out loud. The coldness brought on by her inability to hold her tongue made her shiver. "I am just acting as I should, princess. Yesterday, I had to calm you down, and I might have overstepped my bounds by approaching you that way. I apologize for that."
Just kill me, Brandon, thought Stella, frozen by his words. She stared at the young man for a moment without saying anything. As her shyness turned into anger, she felt her lips parting and her tongue helping her voice out her thoughts.
"Hiding behind your duty instead of directly saying you're bothered doesn't suit you. If you had told me not to burden you with my troubles anymore, I would have understood." Stella moved in front of the screen and started setting up a few obstacles and environments she deemed appropriate for herself without giving Brandon a single glance.
He spoke in a very surprised voice, "Hiding and being bothered?"
Even though she didn't look at his face, Stella could clearly hear his astonishment. But she chose to ignore it and continued with her task. Although she realized she was being too hard on herself, she didn't attempt to remove the obstacles reflected on the screen. Instead, Brandon, frowning, looked back and forth between the screen and Stella, stunned by the unanswered question and criticism he had received.
"That's not the case." Stella turned her back completely on Brandon to show she wasn't listening to him, but this only made Brandon smile. Feeling something he thought was unbecoming of himself put him in a quandary. He sighed and, with hesitation, reached out to gently hold Stella's arm and turned her around so she could face him. As Stella turned towards him without resistance, her morning excitement returned again.
"That's not the case," Brandon repeated, this time feeling the need to confirm it even though he knew she had heard him. "I just thought maybe I had bothered you by not knowing my place."
Stella listened and watched with her brows furrowed. She could actually understand. Eraklyon was as cold as it was soulless. She was aware that most people here were far from kindness and sincerity. Even the servants had an image that could be considered seriously disrespectful, and Stella couldn't help but think about bringing a few people from Solaria to take care of her and them.
"Don't think like that. If that were the case, I could have told you myself, just as I told you many things yesterday. If you're worried about Edden, don't be. I'll handle it without Sky getting hurt."
Focusing especially on the last part, Brandon took his eyes off Stella's radiant and strangely alluring lips and looked into her eyes, frowning. What was that now? "Edden is not someone I would be concerned about and Sky can take care of himself perfectly." This time, it was Stella who was surprised. She looked at Brandon with raised eyebrows, clearly showing she hadn't expected this.
He referred him with his first name? "I didn't know you knew him; why didn't you tell me?" Why did he feel the need to hide it?
"There's not much to say, but if it were important, I would have told you." Stella looked at him for a long time, even though there were still many things bothering her mind, she decided not to delve into them now. Instead, she returned to what she was aiming to do and took another look at the mission she had prepared for herself. When she looked at the screen again, she realized she had indeed prepared a difficult mission, but she avoided backing down in front of Brandon.
"Alright," she muttered. Brandon, noticing that Stella had ended the conversation for now, glanced at the screen she was looking at. "If you want, I mean if you have work, you can go. I don't like being disturbed once I start a mission." Brandon waited for a while; for some reason, he didn't feel like leaving, so he shook his head and leaned against the wall with a stance that indicated he would stay, crossing his arms.
"I'd prefer to stay if I can be involved in the mission." Stella bit her lip and thought for a moment. It would actually be better if she didn't do this challenging mission she had set up in a rush all by herself. She would definitely get through it, but she might exhaust all her stored energy in the process. "Suit yourself," she muttered, sending a confirmation to the screen to scan Brandon's presence.
Brandon moved away from the wall and approached the screen, and as the data registered him, they both waited for a while. Surrounded by violently flashing lightning and thunder, Stella felt like she might vomit under the influence of this dark power, even though it was fake. Brandon instinctively moved closer to her, shielding her with his arm and warning her to stay back as he surveyed the surroundings.
"What kind of thing have you created here?"
"The first battle of Alfea," she said calmly as the creatures approached. "The battle where we lost the most. Even if we won, it never felt like a victory."
Brandon turned to look at Stella. Under Erendor's orders, Eraklyon had stayed behind and not participated in the battle. Brandon had fought a few creatures while being tasked with retrieving Sky and had been on the battlefield for a while during Sky's objections. He cursed himself inwardly. If only, he thought. If only I had stayed and fought. To hell with Erendor's orders.
"I'm sorry. You lost so much; I had heard about it."
Stella nodded, trying to hide her tears. It wasn't working, though, because every time she thought about it, the tears flowed independently. The scars left by that day would never be erased from their minds, even if the physical ones had faded. She remembered how they fought desperately to protect themselves while their friends writhed in pain, which made her feel incredibly selfish.
A creature charged at them, a giant that Stella had already anticipated because she had created this plan. From all sides came giants, reptiles, and birds—but not ordinary birds—enormous ones with snake-like tongues. Brandon, without hesitation, drew his sword, causing the surroundings to glow slightly with a green light.
Without wasting any time, Stella transformed into her fairy form and took her place beside Brandon. Unlike him, she took to the air on her wings to deal with the flying creatures. Brandon, with one eye on Stella and the other on the creatures, began to fight. His mind was incredibly scattered because one part of him was trying to protect the princess, while the other part was shouting; this is the opportunity you've been looking for! Fight and prepare yourself for any future battle!
But he was aware that this was just a trial and that Stella had to test herself here. If she needed his protection, she would have asked for it. What he needed to focus on now was defeating the creatures around him. The slightest touch of his sword caused the creatures to writhe in pain, and Brandon, seemingly satisfied, continued to bring them down with relentless blows.
As Stella looked at the creatures surrounding her with a grin, a fireball mixed with light that even disturbed Brandon surrounded her with a dazzling light. The creatures screamed and vaporized as Stella withdrew her light and flew away from her partner to avoid further disturbance.
Although Stella believed her actions were considerate, Brandon was greatly disturbed by her distancing. He moved towards her again. "I can protect myself!" Stella protested when she realized Brandon was insistently staying close to her. Brandon shook his head, preferring to ignore her.
"My duty is to ensure your safety. You can't expect me to do otherwise."
"But this place isn't real! I can't die here!"
Of course, he knew that, but the thought alone was enough to bother him. "There's no harm in being overly cautious!" As his sword supported this statement by slicing a giant in half, he was already moving towards the next one. Stella's scream, however, stopped him from doing the same. He quickly turned to find the reason for her scream, and when he saw the huge gash in her abdomen, he almost lost his mind. His feet moved before he could even give them an order, catching Stella just in time to prevent her from hitting the ground. What was this?! How could there be real wounds in a virtual simulation?
"How did this happen?!" Stella pressed her hand to her abdomen, holding back another scream. Shaking her head, she looked at the creature that had wounded her. This was definitely not one of the creatures she had planned. How could it be?
Brandon cursed, burying his sword into the ground with all his might. Everything began to vibrate and disappear as the room reverted to its original state. Stella's wound, however, remained. "Damn it!" cursed Brandon as he quickly picked her up, who insisted not to by shaking her head and lightly pushing his chest to stop him.
"No, no, put me down. I can handle it. Put me down."
"You need to see a medic immediately! We can't waste time." Stella groaned, throwing her head back, trying to stop him again. This time she succeeded because Brandon had to set her down when they reached the heavy door. "Just a second, I'll open the door," he said, setting her down, and Stella immediately pressed her hands to her wound, starting the healing process with her light.
When Brandon returned, she was already busy checking her now-healed abdomen. The knight, more than shocked, was irritated for not having thought of it earlier. "I'm fine, really." Brandon didn't respond, so Stella looked up from her abdomen to the young commander trying to understand his silence. Why isn't he looking at me?
"Brandon?"
There was no response. Gathering her courage, Stella grabbed Brandon's chin, insisting he lift his head. When their contrasting eyes met, Brandon could only be thankful. She looks fine, he thought. Yet he couldn't help but feel guilty. She was a fairy, of course, she could heal herself! Even though not every wound could be healed like that, a wound that wasn't too deep wouldn't be much of a problem for her, and it hadn't been.
"How... that creature wasn't on my list. How did it get into the room?"
Brandon realized that this was what he should have been focusing on only when Stella asked. Frowning, he turned to look at the room they had left behind, feeling the rising anger within him growing more intense and indescribable. He turned back to Stella, making sure she was okay before helping her to her feet. Stella, still in her fairy form, was unaware of this fact. "I don't know yet, but I'll find out."
His gaze scanned her for any overlooked injuries, but his heart rate increased not only from anger and adrenaline. Despite being trained to stay controlled and calm in such situations, his heartbeat quickened as he noticed Stella's appearance anew. She's so beautiful, he thought while examining her. Truly the embodiment of a sun fairy. The fabric she wore appeared delicate and thin from the outside, but as he had already confirmed when helping her up, it was a tough material likely to repel any external impact.
Brandon now better understood how mysterious fairies were, having always seen them as girls who wore pretty clothes. The accessory that seemed to serve as shoes was a strange, steel-like material extending up to her knees, which appeared uncomfortable but wasn't actually solid, being elastic and non-restrictive. The vine-like material seemed to pierce through Stella's skin. Frowning, he tried to understand this new sight. Didn't it hurt when she walked?
Following Brandon's gaze, Stella tried to understand his discomfort. "What is it?" she asked, forgetting the shock she had just experienced.
"Those things," he started, pointing to her feet and still trying to make sense of it. "Do they hurt you?"
Frowning, she tried to understand what he was talking about, then smiled, shaking her head. "Those are the veins where magic flows. They're actually all over us, but they're more noticeable on our feet. You can look," she said, showing the veins on her arms and back, which were the color of her skin. They appeared as slight protrusions, not as thick and noticeable as the ones on her feet, but in a way Brandon found very beautiful.
"They don't hurt us." Although she spoke in plural, Brandon didn't care much about what the other fairies went through. "Do they protect you?" he asked while Stella was smiling and nodding, he realized how happy she was talking about her Enchantix, feeling warmth inside him at this new discovery.
"While it looks like we're floating when we move on our toes, it's because of those. Full protection, especially with thicker veins at our heels and ankles, look."
Lifting her foot to show her heel at hip height, she smiled at Brandon, excitedly waiting for him to examine her heel unaware of how speechless she left him. Lowering his head, Brandon studied Stella's foot, swallowing as he examined the situation she was trying to show him. Indeed, the branching at the heel and ankle was denser and more robust. Despite having a glittery appearance, they seemed incredibly strong.
Thinking about the combination of powers Stella possessed, he lifted his head and looked back at the fairy. "So beautiful," he murmured unintentionally, causing Stella to freeze.
"Thank you," she murmured quietly, feeling her cheeks flush. Why was she blushing so much? She couldn't remember ever blushing this much before! "Are you sure you're okay? If you want, you can see the palace's medical staff; they're quite professional."
Shaking her head, Stella declined the offer. "No need, my Enchantix has probably begun regenerating my blood cells. Even if it was a venomous claw, the poison has already been cleansed." Brandon nodded in agreement but then paused as an idea struck him. "So, there was no need for me to give you that antidote yesterday?"
Stella smiled and nodded, feeling a peculiar sense of embarrassment. "But it was very considerate of you to think of my health right away, thank you." Although Brandon cleared his throat and averted his eyes, Stella sensed he was equally embarrassed. Given the handsome knight standing before her, she couldn't help but wonder if she was misinterpreting his signals. She noticed that Brandon spent most of his day with a stern expression, only rarely showing normal human emotions. It was hard to discern what he was feeling at the moment.
"Given the current situation, it seems your work here isn't safe for now. It would be better to come back after an inspection. Moreover, this incident has convinced me that I need to thoroughly examine both of the training areas prepared for you. Until I say otherwise, I'd prefer if you refrain from wandering around alone."
Stella pouted and lowered her head in disappointment. Great, she thought to herself, first Sky leaves me here like a prisoner, and now someone is trying to kill me, making it so I can't even move freely in this confined space. As Brandon carefully looked over her, he tried not to focus too much on her fairy form. She was incredibly beautiful. Instead, he focused on her sulking expression, pondering how he might lift her spirits even a little. Suddenly, he paused as an idea came to him.
"Stella..." she lifted her head, looking at him expectantly. Brandon hesitated, wondering if it was right to say what he was about to say. However, seeing Stella's amber-colored eyes gleaming with anticipation, he decided to stop thinking and just say it.
"There's a large workspace in my room. If you want and if it wouldn't be a problem for you, you can use it. You won't have to explain anything to anyone. If you're in there when I'm not, no one will say anything." Stella listened carefully. Her thoughts were more focused on being in Brandon's room rather than what others might say. How would this affect her, for instance? Because even now, Brandon's presence was making her nervous, and Stella wasn't stupid; she could interpret her own racing heart, excitement, and silliness. She had started to like Brandon, but this would cause her a lot of trouble in many ways. The reason was that she was married! Whether it was a real marriage or not, Stella knew she had to play the role of a married woman and shouldn't arouse any suspicion, no matter how small they turn out to be.
As Brandon waited for an answer, he realized for the first time in his life that he was stressed. Even if he thought he had overstepped his bounds with his offer, it was too late to turn back now. Bringing this up was another problem because Stella had already warned him about it once. So why was she so quiet? Just as Brandon was thinking of throwing everything aside, Stella broke the silence and smiled at him. "Thank you, that would be great. Your room is at the back, right?" Though he tried not to show his relief and surprise, Brandon averted his gaze and nodded while exhaling deeply. "Yes, it's the furthest room in the palace since my trainings can be a bit disturbing."
Stella, surprising even herself, giggled and felt that if her cheeks got any redder, she would turn into a little sun herself. "Actually, I was thinking maybe you could train me? That way, I could defend myself without using magic."
It was an offer he should have refused immediately. He should have rejected it and clarified that it could be easily misunderstood. But Brandon didn't know how to say no to her, and deep down, he genuinely wanted to know that Stella could protect herself without magic. Damn Renoux had already made him paranoid!
"Sure. Of course, whenever you want."
As Stella's smile faded, she swallowed hard. The path they were on was very risky, but neither of them was stopping. Without retreating, without warning, they had chosen to walk straight down that path. Even though they were both aware of the risks, running away or giving up didn't seem appealing at all.