Leon returned from the expedition to be informed that the Princess and the temporary General had left to secure more stones.

Outwardly, he brushed off the information. Deep down, he hoped he was around then so he would have gone with her. He didn’t trust Tristan, and especially not after how Tristan acted the previous day.

Darkness covered the earth by the time Leon made his way back to his cell.

The expedition had gone well, no one was injured or hurt. But it was clear from the sheer amount of AI beasts they encountered that the empire couldn’t last any longer without the detectors.

Privately, Leon had hoped to look into the devices and why they all suddenly gave up. Again, all needles pointed to Tristan, like a compass always pointing south. He was the acting general, and right after resuming office this happens?

Leon found it suspicious.

And the Princess. That shiny goldfish was with her right now.

The trip was to take two days just to arrive at the mining site. After that, Leon had no idea how long it would take for them to return.

Two days. Maybe a week. Maybe two.

His eyes darted to the neat stack of bottled yellow spores. Almost a hundred of them.

She wants me gone for three months? Leon scoffed. Even after he told her to start healing him in person, all she did was send multiple bottles.

He took one and used it.

The soft flowery scent wrapped around him like a cloud, reminding him of her.

Anna.

Lately he’d been calling her by her first name in his head a lot. He didn’t think much about it till he heard Tristan use her first name.

Anna. Anna. Anna.

Leon took another bottle and used it.

He can’t stop thinking about her. How soft she felt in his arms, how small her body was as he shielded her from harm, how good she smelled. His mouth watered when he caught a whiff of her scent.

He wanted to bite her neck, sink his fangs deep into her soft flesh, lap at her blood and listen to the tiniest sounds she’d make.

Like the ones she made with Kai.

Leon smashed the empty bottle against the floor and took another one.

His corruption flared, the voices in his head got louder and louder. Whispering. Talking over one another. Urging him to give into his darkest desires.

He wondered what her blood would taste like. If it’d be as sweet as her scent. Would it have the same effect as her spores?

He took another bottle.

And another.

And another.

Till he’d used ten in one sitting.

Only then did the voices quieten down.

But it wasn’t enough.

Having her spores through a fucking bottle wasn’t enough.

He needed to feel her in person. Hold her close against his body. He wanted to feel her spores pouring out of her and choking the life out of him. He didn’t care if they were yellow or red.

He needed to feel her spores.

"Fuck." He groaned, his mane bristling, his muscles tight with tension as his mind spun and spun and spun.

Anna.

What was she doing now?

Probably getting cozy with Tristan.

Unholy images filled Leon’s mind. He let out an angry roar, his fist slamming into the wall. A massive dent appeared in the smooth brick, bits of cement crumbling to the ground.

It wasn’t enough.

He needed more.

More. More.

Anna. He needed to see her. Squeeze her dainty neck till it snapped like a twig.

No.

He didn’t want to snap her neck.

He wanted to—

—her lips.

Yes. He wanted to kiss them. Bite them. Drink in her moans mixed with her fragrant blood. Taste her.

Heat rushed through Leon’s body, staggering his steps, blurring his vision.

Anna.

Anna.

How far along should they be now?

Can he catch up to them? Maybe in his beast form he can—

Liora.

The name pierced through his mind, shattering his muddled thoughts of Anna.

He straightened up, carding his fingers through his hair. A short laugh punched out of him.

"I’ve lost my mind," he muttered.

Did he forget the woman he loved? The one he would stick his neck out for no matter the situation?

He composed himself, and without another glance at the mess of broken bottles, left the cell.

He arrived at Princess Lotus’s room. The guards didn’t question him and quietly let him in. The moment he stepped into the spore filled sanctuary, his shoulders relaxed and he exhaled.

Did he forget how much calm and peace his real love brought him?

How did he let himself get consumed with thought of Anna?

He walked over to Princess Lotus, gazing down at her unconscious form with affectionate eyes. One of this days he held onto the hope that she would stir. She’d open her eyes and reach out for him, and together they’ll take down her evil sister.

Anna.

As Leon stared at Liora’s face, her features began to morph into Anna’s.

While the sisters were similar, they were also as different as water and oil.

Leon could see the difference, Anna’s face superimposing over Liora’s. Mocking him. Taunting him for being unable to do anything.

"This is all her fault," Leon whispered, going down on his knees. He reached out with shaky hands, but stopped himself before he could touch her hand. "She did this to you. And now she’s burrowing herself into my soul."

Liora didn’t stir. The only sign of life in her body being the steady but slow rise and fall of her chest.

"I hate her."

He took Liora’s hand, pressing a soft kiss to her knuckles.

"I hate her so much."

Liora’s expression remained peaceful. Sweet. Innocent. Everything Anna will never be.

"I should have killed her. Dumped her body far from the palace. Framed someone for it."

The voices came back with vengeance. Whispering. Sowing seeds. Nudging him towards the path he felt more familiar with—violence.

"I should have ended her," he dropped Liora’s hand and rose to his feet. "You’ll forgive me if I kill your sister, won’t you?"

Liora didn’t reply. She only continued to sleep.

But Leon already knew the answer in his heart.

He knew exactly what to do.

So he left. Kept walking till he got to the palace gates. Once he was out, he shifted into his beast form. The massive lion beast tore through the streets, faster than a lightning bolt.

His destination? The closest ruins.