How To End This Marriage-Chapter 170: The Forbidden Spell’s Price

"Go! Open the entrance to this secret chamber of the library," the God Lunar urged, gently guiding Duchess Bernice forward.

"Me? Do you think it’s right for an outsider like me to access the secret chamber?" the Duchess questioned, her voice laced with apprehension.

"I’ve considered it carefully, Duchess. If you’re uncomfortable, I won’t force you." God Lunar stepped back, placing his hands calmly behind his back.

"Force me? I just need to open the door, right?"

"You’ll understand soon," God Lunar replied enigmatically, taking a position behind her.

"This is all so unsettling," Duchess muttered, feeling an oppressive silence pressing down on them. "It’s as if the walls themselves whisper secrets."

"I don’t know what you’re experiencing, Duchess," God Lunar said, his voice tinged with urgency. "But we can’t delay. The imposter will be here soon, jeopardizing everything."

"What imposter? The door only opens to..." the God of Fate, Moiroi, attempted to interject, but God Lunar silenced him with a gesture. 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

"Stay calm, Moiroi. Fragments of your memory are missing. Let me handle this." God Lunar whispered into Moiroi’s ear as the Duchess cautiously advanced, her footsteps echoing in the oppressive stillness.

The lock on the hidden door remained stubbornly in place. Just as the Duchess reached it, the lock vanished, the massive door swinging open with a groan, sending God Lunar crashing to his knees.

"Welcome back, Your Highness, the Heavenly Princess!" God Lunar declared, kneeling with his head bowed.

"I greet the Heavenly Princess," Moiroi echoed, his voice trembling with shock.

"The princess has returned to her rightful place!" the library guard exclaimed, bowing deeply with a joyous smile. "I no longer need to guard the secret door. The heir is finally here."

"What is happening? Why are you all acting this way? I’m a mortal! A human! A duchess! How could I be the heir to the Heavenly Realm? The Heavenly Princess? This is all a mistake!" the Duchess exclaimed, bewildered and confused.

"No mistake, Princess," God Lunar asserted, his voice firm. "You are indeed the Heavenly Princess, the rightful heir to the Heavenly Realm’s throne. The position of Supreme God is yours."

Suddenly, the true Supreme God appeared, his eyes wide with alarm. "What is happening here? Who allowed you into this sacred chamber?"

"You!" the Duchess gasped. "What are you doing here? And how did the door open?"

"Because your lies have been exposed," God Lunar declared. "Your reign as the imposter Supreme God ends now."

"Imposter? How dare you!" the false Supreme God sputtered, his facade crumbling.

"The secret chamber only opens for the Supreme God or their heir," the library guardian stated, his voice ringing with authority.

"You are the one who utter this to them right?" the supreme god turned to the library guardian angrily.

"I? Ha ha! You’re forgetting that I can’t tell the truth unless the Heavenly Princess’s punishment is complete. I can never betray the heavenly superiors who gave her the punishment." the guardian said.

"Then how on earth did they bring her here? And how did she manage to enter?" the Supreme God shouted.

"Because she’s always been coming here back and forth as she wishes. This isn’t the first time she’s set foot in the Heavenly Realm. Sometimes she came here at will." the God Lunar said.

"And you might not know this, but this isn’t the first time she’s gone back in time. It’s happened before. I don’t know why, and this proves you’re not the Supreme God. If you were, you’d have knowledge about everything happening in this world." the God Lunar said again.

"You are not the heir, nor the Supreme God." the God Lunar stated again.

"Ha! I may not be the Supreme God, but who told you I’m not the heir to the Supreme God?" the Supreme God said.

"What do you mean?" the Lunar God said.

"The Supreme God who ruled before was my mother. I was the prophecy child, the heir to the Supreme God until this woman appeared out of nowhere. Ask her! Does she even know how she became the heir to the Supreme God?" the Supreme God mocked.

"No! She doesn’t, because no one knows until one day the heavenly superiors found her floating on the clouds with a heavenly emblem on her. That’s when the prophecy declared that she’s the heir to the Supreme God." the Supreme God said.

"She’s nothing but someone’s abandoned child with no known mother or father." the Supreme God said.

"Enough!" Duchess Bernice shouted. "Enough with your bullshit! You have nothing to prove I’m the Heavenly Princess."

"What did you say? I’m illegitimate? If I am, then how on earth did I, or the one you claim I am, become the true heir to the heavenly throne? I don’t think any mudblood would take the place of something so pure, right?" Duchess said.

"And I don’t think I’m the Heavenly Princess either. I’m just a human betrayed by you gods. And once again, I’m pulled here again to make me lose my path, which I won’t. I will never believe anything you all say because you’re all corrupted." the Duchess said.

"Princess, you are the Heavenly Princess. Didn’t you see the door unlocked, which can only be unlocked by the Supreme God? It’s the truth, even though I don’t remember how it happened, why I didn’t know you existed, or how you were sent to the mortal world." the God Lunar said.

"It may be your trick to get me to do something?" the Duchess said.

"No princess! I’m playing no games. This is the truth. This is the reality that you are no other than the Heavenly Princess who belongs here in this realm, not the mortal realm." the Lunar God said.

"Then why can’t I remember anything? Why did no god intervene when I suffered? Instead, they watched me break?" Duchess Bernice roared, a storm brewing in her eyes.

Supreme God laughed, a cold, grating sound. "Ha! Because you chose him!" he spat, his words dripping with venom.

"You chose that cruel mortal, abandoned your life here, and shattered the Heavenly Realm’s laws," he accused, voice dripping with scorn.

"Enough!" thundered the Library Guardian, his booming voice filling the chamber. "Her punishment remains incomplete. Revealing the truth now would disrupt the delicate balance."

"But she’s the Heavenly Realm’s Princess! Why can’t she know? If she remains ignorant, this imposter will usurp her throne and erase my memories, just like he did to Moiroi," God Lunar argued, his voice tight with frustration.

Supreme God smirked again. "So, you knew too? Not as foolish or weak as the rest, I’ll give you that. You sense the discordant rhythm in the universe, and who else wields such power in this realm but me?"

God Lunar stood tall, his chin held high. "And why haven’t you erased mine then?" he challenged.

As Supreme God stepped forward, a dark light flickering in his hand, Duchess Bernice instinctively planted herself before God Lunar, forming a living shield. The spell sputtered and died, unable to penetrate her presence.

"Aurelia! Step aside! This will only hurt you," Supreme God finally hissed, his mask slipping for a moment, revealing the name he hadn’t uttered in eons.

Duchess Bernice blinked, confusion clouding her features. "Aurelia? Who? I’m not Aurelia."

"You may have lost yourself, but I haven’t," he rasped, a flicker of pain crossing his face. "You were Aurelia, the Heavenly Realm’s beloved princess, a butterfly dancing on the clouds, your laughter echoing like celestial music.

"Those memories may be buried, but not for me. You were the woman I could never surpass, no matter how I strained. Yet, despite my envy, my heart couldn’t help but be drawn to you. I would have accepted you as Supreme God, forgotten everything you took, if not for him."

His voice grew bitter, laced with accusation. "You set foot in the mortal realm, saved his life not once, not twice, but thrice, shattering the laws of the heavens. Healing is noble, but resurrecting the dead - a forbidden spell reserved for the darkest mages. And you, on the cusp of ascension, used it for him, a man you barely knew. Do you think I could forget that? You embraced your punishment, but I refused to accept your choice. I begged you, like a desperate hound, but you wouldn’t relent. And now, you stand before me, claiming amnesia? I’m not blind, Aurelia. My eyes pierce through your veil, my heart recognizes your soul even if you don’t. This charade ends now."

"Who is this Aurelia you keep calling me? I’m not her. I’m a human, not a princess. I’m Bernice Balliol, daughter of the Marquis Kael Balliol, Duchess of Ablia, and wife of Alexavier Agnes. I’m Bernice Balliol Agnes, and this ’Aurelia’ you speak of is a complete stranger to me. I don’t know anyone by that name."

"Please stop this nonsensical game. I don’t even know the rules!" Duchess Bernice’s voice trembled with a mix of fear and frustration.