Brandon walked through the corridors, fully aware of the significance of the day. As someone who had always been in Nyxoria, he wasn't intimidated by the palace, but the weight and value of what he was wearing made him extremely nervous. Even though he was in a bad mood, he tried not to show it and continued to walk with his head held high. During the week he spent with his parents, he had learned a lot about them. The king already knew his son and was familiar with him, but his mother had not had that chance. Her affection initially felt foreign to Brandon, but the warmth and love she showed eventually helped him get used to it. He sighed, feeling relieved as he approached the end of the long corridor.
Brandon had been interrogated about himself before, forced to talk about his life for hours. But back then, Stella's kisses and her presence on top of him had made it bearable. As his parents talked and asked him to recount his experiences, Brandon found himself thinking about those moments, making his situation even more difficult. Not being able to touch his girlfriend's skin or hear her voice had never bothered him as much as it did now. Brandon was experiencing many firsts, and all they did was frustrate and challenge him.
In fact, he had never fully understood the logic of creating this distance, and in trying to protect Stella, he had thrown himself into the fire. Although he didn't think Stella was very different from him, he had a feeling that something was off because everything was happening too quickly. As the doors opened to invite him in, his parents stopped their conversation at the long dining table and looked at him with broad smiles. Brandon tried to suppress his very obvious anger as he exhaled and took his place to the right of his mother and the left of his father. The size of the table and the fact that one of his parents sat at one end while the other sat at the opposite end seemed pointless to Brandon. When he dined with Stella, he liked to be right next to her, close enough to smell her. He couldn't understand how this arrangement was comfortable for them.
"Good morning," Brandon tried to greet them with a nod, but his mother stood up and hugged him tightly. As Brandon wrapped one arm around her waist in response, his father felt another wave of guilt spreading within him. Brandon's recent frequent visits to find his family had been enough to spur him into action, but it didn't erase the fact that he had been late. He should have brought his son to him earlier and revealed the truth to everyone. While Brandon was preparing to be a knight worthy of Nyxoria, his pride remained as intense as it had been on the first day, but what Brandon should have been focusing on was the kingdom and the throne. As a king, he had acted selfishly, depriving his wife of both love and presence, and allowing Brandon to grow up away from them. Although Red Fountain was managed by men he trusted implicitly, he still wanted Brandon to receive the respect he deserved as a prince. For Brandon, the mystery lay in why the king had spent so much money on his education. An even more special and secure room than Sky's had been allocated to him. No one, including Brandon, understood why the king valued him so much, but after a while, this mystery ceased to bother him because Stella loved his room at Red Fountain.
To keep her by his side even for an extra hour, Brandon had put aside his pride and accepted the room and the accompanying service for Stella's sake. Now that he knew the reason, he began to realize that the situation wasn't so absurd after all—the king had done everything he could to ensure Brandon didn't feel the absence of a family. Brandon had often joined royal meals. Although the queen had initially been uneasy about it, she had grown to welcome him with affection over time. She had come to expect Brandon's presence at the table.
"How are you? Is your room comfortable, sweetie? We arranged the colors without asking you, but you can change them if you want." Brandon shook his head, allowing his mother to shower his cheek with kisses, then cleared his throat with a sigh. "Everything is fine, the colors too. But there's something I want to ask of you." The king furrowed his brows, unable to hide his tension as he sensed Brandon's discomfort.
"What is it, son?"
Brandon lifted his head and met the king's gaze. There wasn't much to say—they knew very well what he was going to ask. As he shook his head, Brandon furrowed his brows and gripped his fork tightly. "This wasn't what we agreed on. I haven't heard from Stella in a week. I don't know if she's okay or if she needs me. I want to see her as much as I want to keep her safe. Don't deny me this."
The king sighed, looking at Brandon with sadness. Though he understood his son well, he wasn't sure about anything when it came to his niece. "Brandon," the queen looked at her son and husband with concern. Even though she knew they wouldn't fight, the atmosphere was not going in a positive direction. She couldn't even fathom Brandon's inner turmoil, especially during Stella's difficult time.
"Son, this is for Stella's sake. Reaching her immediately or talking to her frequently would have already revealed everything." Let it be revealed! Brandon forced himself to stay silent with all his willpower. He had promised Stella he would call her, but here, talking to his father, he couldn't believe how helpless he felt. Not knowing Stella's condition had drained all his patience. "At least I want to hear from her. I want to know how she is. Please," he bowed his head and swallowed hard. "Please let me do something." The king and queen exchanged looks. Their newly reunited son had frequently dined at this table and participated in conversations; there were no strangers among them. After some time, Queen Ursula felt that Brandon had taken the place of her lost son, a feeling that only intensified upon learning the truth. Her love grew, and her affection found its place. Now, however, they could do nothing but helplessly tell Brandon what he couldn't do. King Barbatos had often shown his paternal side, but since it had been done in secret, it was hard to call it "fatherhood."
But it was difficult, especially when the doors opened and revealed the person they had been avoiding, making the situation even more challenging. "Good morning, everyone." Valtor approached the dining table with his usual grin, and Ursula smiled warmly as she greeted him by patting his head in response to his kiss on her hand. Valtor's only display of affection was reserved for the queen of darkness, Ursula Nyxoria. Although this was not widely known, the king was certain, having witnessed it with his own eyes. Often, when Valtor needed to do something, he would ask his wife, knowing she would request it from Valtor in a way he couldn't refuse.
"How are you, cousin?" Brandon responded with a cold gaze to the grinning idiot sitting right across from him. There wasn't a trace of the desperation and sadness that had once characterized Brandon. The man he knew as his cousin would already test his patience with annoying comments every morning. "What is it that makes you so happy again?" Asked Valtor sarcastically. When he looked at his uncle with a smile, the king shot him a warning glance, but Valtor turned back to Brandon, ignoring it. Valtor could admit that Brandon was the most cold-blooded and savage person he had ever seen. Apart from Stella, he had never seen him act sincerely towards anyone; of course, now his mother was an exception too. The queen looked at the two young men with concern, loving them both dearly, but right now, she was more worried about her son. She didn't think Brandon was weaker, knowing that her son had etched his name in gold letters by saving the universe multiple times. However, when it came to Valtor, strength wasn't the key factor. Valtor worked through deceit, not power.
As Brandon continued to respond with his steady and cold gaze, Valtor kept giggling. "How is Stella?" Brandon gritted his teeth and glared at Valtor with obvious anger, while Valtor was too busy filling his plate with breakfast to notice. "The last time I saw her, they were playing a game with a box full of symbols, bouncing it around so they could send me down into the ground. What times those were, we do it now and then to relieve stress." He finally lifted his head and looked at Brandon as he stuffed cheese into his mouth. Seeing that he hadn't managed to anger Brandon as much as he wanted, he decided to push a little more. Brandon, however, just stared at him with clenched teeth, gripping his fork tightly.
"I must say, even when she turned into a monster, she was incredibly beautiful. Even the volume of her hair didn't change! I guess no one will ever see that girl ugly, you're lucky, Brandon. By the way, why did you break up? Did you really abandon the woman you were with even when she was a monster, when you found out that you are a member of royalty?" That was it for Brandon, with a swift motion he slammed the fork right next to Valtor's hand clearly warning him to shut his mouth. But Valtor didn't even blink as Brandon's mother let out a scream. The king and queen looked at the table and then at Brandon with concern, while Valtor continued chewing. The king signaled the queen to stop. There was already tension between them, and it was best for it to erupt right in front of their eyes, so he allowed Brandon to vent his hatred.
"You will never take Stella's name in your filthy mouth again. Your weakness didn't come from their numbers; remember, they all earned their Enchantix by facing you. You tested them, and they passed every test by defeating you. Don't think you're something, Valtor, even the ass you're sitting on is higher than your character. You're a lowlife."
Valtor finally changed his mocking gaze, revealing the disgust he had been hiding from Brandon. His nerves, already frayed, were now too obvious to conceal. As he stood up, rising to Brandon's eye level, the heavy and intense tension in the room escalated as their angry gazes met. "Boys," Queen Ursula looked at the two men she loved dearly with concern, while the king shot her another warning glance, but she ignored her husband. "Please, don't do this. Seeing you like this upsets me so much."
Brandon didn't back down, but there was a noticeable softening in both of them. "Stella will be your red line. You won't talk about her, you won't bother her, you won't even think about anything related to her." As Valtor looked at his cousin with disdain, that rogue grin returned to his lips. "Don't worry, your Stella will soon be too far away to be talked about. Then there will be no need to discuss these things." Brandon grabbed Valtor by the collar and pulled him close, looking at him with an anger he had never felt towards anyone before, barely containing the worry that Valtor had planted inside him. "What nonsense are you talking about?"
Valtor continued to grin without breaking his composure, while the king gave a small signal to the soldiers in the room to be on alert. A fight could break out at any moment, and Brandon's hands couldn't be stained with blood, especially not his cousin's blood.
"Don't you really know? Wow, I thought it was a game, but you really did break up!" Unable to stop himself from laughing, Valtor let his laughter echo in the room, not even caring about the hands holding him. When Brandon suddenly slammed Valtor's head into the table, the queen couldn't help but scream, but Brandon pulled his cousin over the table and threw him to the ground, landing a hard punch. Even for Valtor, this was too much. As a response, Valtor couldn't stop the fire rising from his hands, not wanting to either, and was about to attack Brandon when Brandon grabbed his throat tightly, waiting for the dark mana to spread through his cousin's body. The king, seeing Brandon use darkness as a weapon with amazement, postponed feeling proud, still not giving the soldiers permission to intervene. He wouldn't miss the opportunity to see what his son was capable of.
Valtor felt like he was suffocating. As his powers withdrew and hid, Brandon seemed to push them away as if scaring them. He had done this before, but the person in front of him wasn't as strong as Valtor at the time. Brandon, practically going mad from his anger and the possibility of Stella being in danger, was able to unleash his power by succumbing to his inner fear. "Speak! What are you talking about?!"
As Valtor continued to cough, the queen looked at her son with tear-filled eyes. "Brandon! Please, you'll kill him, stop."
Normally, even the trembling voice of the queen would have enough power to make him step back, but right now, he didn't think anyone could stop him as long as Stella was involved.
"A mission," his coughing wasn't subsiding but he kept talking so Brandon won't try the darkness on him again. "They've been sent on a mission. Without her sun power, Stella can only fight with moon power; you should know that." Actually, neither Brandon nor Valtor could know this. Yes, Icy had been caught off guard and defeated by Stella. Just like Stormy. Stella had easily defeated both of them without using all her light reserves, but this didn't change the fact that they didn't know how powerful moon powers could be or how far it could go. Even Stella couldn't estimate how strong her intense and bright power was. Realizing his unnecessary worry, Brandon loosened his fingers.
"So, what you were talking about was a mission? Fool, look at what you're risking your life for. Stella easily defeated two witches known for danger. And you think a mission could finish her? You really are empty and stupid."
Valtor, looking up at his cousin with annoyance between his coughs, began to rub his throat. The suffocating effect of the darkness had shaken him more than the pain. Brandon was undoubtedly the prince of darkness, and he had proven it very clearly. But Valtor had missed one more thing: his cousin wouldn't be easily manipulated. Maybe he could easily ignite his anger, but manipulation wouldn't be easy. Undoubtedly, marking Brandon wouldn't work either because the darkness inside him would swallow that mark in a second. Swallowing as he regained his composure, he first turned to his uncle and then to his aunt. He quickly turned his head to avoid seeing the tears streaming down his aunt's face, then hissed at Brandon. "Don't underestimate me, specialist. I was here before you were."
Brandon rolled his eyes and turned to leave the room, but Valtor knew the words to stop him. "Your Stella is weak because she's strong. She's no different from a newborn; if she loses her moon power after exhausting her solar energy, can you imagine the outcome? I can. Death. Inevitable death." Brandon clenched his fists and looked at his father with a voice that brooked no refusal. "I need to get to the mission site before she does."
The king stared at Brandon for a moment. Was all their effort in vain? Why had Stella and Brandon distanced themselves? It was all to prevent Valtor from using Stella as Brandon's weak spot! But his son displayed his love, interest, and obsession so openly that even a passerby could see it, let alone Valtor. "And he's coming with me." This sentence, which even wiped the smirk off Valtor's face, pinned the king and queen to their seats. As Brandon turned his gaze to Valtor, he didn't even try to hide his grin. Valtor couldn't remember the last time he was this surprised. As Brandon leaned in towards him, his gaze was sharp and confident.
"It's time to clean up the mess you made. I'll be watching you, cousin, and you will no longer face the girls." As Valtor tilted his head and furrowed his brows, preparing to say something in response, Brandon raised his hand to stop him. "Especially not Stella. She will be your red line. If I hear, see, or even sense that you intend to harm her," he leaned in even closer and whispered words meant only for Valtor to hear, "I will make sure you drown in that darkness that terrified you just now, Valtor."
Realizing that what he felt was indeed terror made Valtor even more terrified. Brandon had seen his fear and made it clear he wouldn't hesitate to use it against him. As he slowly pulled back, the look they exchanged said a lot. Brandon now understood why Valtor stayed in Nyxoria. It wasn't because his father was from there or because Domino didn't accept him. Since Stella had said that even though the Dragon Fire was strong, the life force within her was fire, everything that had been spinning in his mind suddenly made sense. Darkness was the strongest, most dominant, and immutable force. Once darkness enveloped you, nothing else mattered because fear already made you weak. Whoever mastered the darkness used fear as their weapon and terror as their deadly strike. And Valtor came closer to darkness, acting as if he wasn't scared of it but it was just a bluff. A risk taken by him.
Brandon wouldn't hesitate to make these moves; if it was about Stella, there was nothing he wouldn't do. While Valtor was torn between acceptance and resistance, it was Brandon's turn to grin. Darkness had even overwhelmed Stella, the princess who contained the light of the universe, and despite her Dragon Fire, Stella had struggled. Even though Brandon didn't do it intentionally, the light that followed had shown that Stella didn't have an inferior side; she hadn't given up and had come back with her moon power, which she had never used before. Normally, he should have been afraid to even touch her, let alone look at her, because as Valtor had said, if she lost her moon power too, Stella...
But he didn't need to think about that because Brandon knew what would keep her alive. The only problem was that the only thing he knew right now was spreading darkness. He knew how to use the weapon, but he didn't know how to stop it yet. Once he learned that, he would be able to control his hunger for Stella by pulling the darkness back from within her, giving her back her sun. When Brandon patted Valtor on the shoulder twice, Valtor realized his mistake. He had shown Brandon how powerful he was.
While the king gave orders to the officials for the upcoming journey, the stare-down between Brandon and Valtor continued until the queen approached them. Ursula bent down and watched them with concern. "Boys, seeing you like this tears me apart. Please..." Pressing her lips together, she looked at Valtor and Brandon. Valtor couldn't bring himself to look at her; he had never enjoyed and intentionally done anything to upset this woman. Brandon, on the other hand, turned to his mother with a smile still lingering on his lips to say words that further irritated Valtor in an attempt to calm her down.
"We're cousins, Mom. He's fire, and I'm darkness; we'll get along. Don't worry." Hearing his son call her mother had turned the queen's mood in instant. She looked at Brandon, making sure she heard what she thought she did.
Damn it, thought Valtor. He really is aware of it. Brandon nodded as if he had heard Valtor's thoughts, then, pretending to help him up, grabbed him by the neck and lifted him with a seemingly easy move.
"Stella lost her sun because of me. But that wasn't her only power. What about you? Do you have anything to fall back on when your fire is gone, Valtor?" As Valtor gritted his teeth and looked at his cousin, he had never felt such a strong urge to use force. Brandon patted him on the shoulder again and approached him with a seemingly friendly gesture, his face suddenly serious and his posture stiff. The king's admiring glances at his son were only noticed by the queen. As Brandon repeated the words he used before, Valtor had to press all his anger back in place so not to face the darkness again. "Stella is your red line Valtor. Cross it, and there will be nothing to stop me from becoming a nightmare in your life."
Giving a respectful salute to his parents, indicating he would withdraw, he turned around. Before leaving the room, he gave Valtor one last look and grinned. "Be ready, cousin."