The Princess And The Lord

"Don't worry, nothing is going happen," Lory waved her hand in a playful manner and everyone's expression relaxed despite feeling nervous. She turned her focus back to the symbol on the ground and murmured quietly, "I hope…"

"I'm here so nothing is going to happen to you," Zhao Li Xin smiled warmly at Lory.

Bei Li Yan and Jin Hao mouths' twitched. Who was going to protect them if their Lord was only protecting his woman? They simultaneously took out their protective amulets and talisman in case something bad really happened.

Lory examined the three overlapping circles on the ground. Each circle had an ancient number with corresponding symbols. The inner-circle had a star symbol, while the second circle had a cloud symbol and the outer circle had an owl symbol.

"Miss… Are you sure?" General Fu's voice trembled slightly as he asked. There was no way he or his people could survive if the tomb collapsed.

"Don't worry’’" Lory reassured him.

General Fu could not oppose Lory's idea as he did not have a better one. He swallowed his doubt and let her concentrate on the weird symbols.

Lory took a deep breath. She was the only one who could solve the puzzle as it was not from this world. She was also sure the person who built the place had some connection to her world.

Zhao Li Xin anxiously watched Lory. Unlike General Fu, he was not scared of the possibility of the tomb collapsing. He only worried about her safety. He wished he could stick close to her but she did not let him. He could watch her from a distance while being vigilant.

"Seven-eight-nine…" Lory muttered as she stepped on the numbers inside the first circle. Everyone was stunned as the first circle automatically moved to the center, revealing a symbol. They held their breath with anxiety as the circle stopped moving. Everything was quiet for a few seconds and Lory sighed in relief, "One down, two to go."

"One’" Lory said quietly as she stepped on the number in the second circle. The circle moved in the same direction as the first one and revealed a cloud symbol. Her audience repeated the same actions as before and only exhaled when nothing happened. 

"WAIT!" Ming Ru Yi who had recovered her voice shouted at Lory. "How do you know this? The map never said anything about this and even my father, the Emperor, did not know this… How would you..."

"You have a map too?" Lory tilted her head and turned to Zhao Li Xin, "Is their map the same as the one you have?"

"I don't know…" Zhao Li Xin shrugged with indifference.

"I'm asking you- how do you know something the royal family didn't know?" Ming Ru Yi demanded once again.

"I know because it's not yours. It does not even belong to your ancestor," Lory smiled at Ming Ru Yi and answered calmly. "The royal family was just the keeper, not the owner."

Lory moved her foot to the last circle and stepped on the three numbers. A glowing owl symbol appeared this time around. A blue light glowed right in the middle of the symbol and at the edge of the circle. The silence in the hall was broken by a loud clank followed by the sound of shifting gears. A hole appeared from the ceiling, allowing the moonlight to penetrate into the hall. The penetrating light touched the mirror and the reflecting light bounced to the opposite wall.

Everyone was astonished by the scene before them. No one could have guessed the beauty hidden in the tomb. Bei Li Yan and Jin Hao watched Lory with indescribable expressions while Zhao Li Xin threw her an uneasy look. Zhao Li Xin felt like something was slipping through his fingers but there was nothing he could do. 

"There is a story about goddess Lealuna. She was very shy, lazy, fickle, or whatever one called it. She usually hid behind the clouds and refused to show herself. Thaldient, her father missed her dearly so he decided to trick her out of hiding," Lory smiled faintly but her eyes were on the floor as she remembered one of her mother's bedtime stories.

"To lure Lealuna out of hiding, Thaldient first illuminated the night sky with seven million eight hundred and nine stars. He then created the first owl in the world and taught it to hoot. Lealuna was intrigued by the night light and the new noise. She dropped her guard as she peeks outside then Thaldient took this chance he ordered the wind god to blow the cloud away. This forced Lealuna to appear in the sky," Lory's soft voice enticed everyone listening to her. They were all in the daze as she finished the story. 

"Brother Mong Yi, could you please adjust the mirror? Let the light from the mirror reflect on the moon carving," Lory asked.

"Oh, oh okay," Mong Yi shook his head to clear his mind from the story. It was like waking from a dream. He jumped close to the mirror and did what Lory asked. The light touched the moon curving symbol inside the woman's embrace.

"Do the numbers have a specific meaning?" Zhao Li Xin asked as he watched Lory.

Lory could not help but feel proud of her man for being very smart. "Seven-eight-nine are sacred numbers in ancient numerical theology. The number one is allocated to a King or ruler and three…"

The moon carving suddenly glowed in a dark blue and the light spread out like electricity touching every carve in the wall. The dark cave became as bright as daylight and the wall with moon carving split open. Everyone squinted and covered their eyes with their hands or sleeves as a brighter light emerged from inside the wall.

Zhao Li Xin jumped towards Lory and embraced her tightly, protecting her from the gust of wind from the new opening. He worried about her safety and wanted to take her away from the hall. He held back when Lory pulled his sleeve to gain his attention. Her face was calm as she smiled at him. She seemed prepared for the weird happenings.

"I need to go…" Lory told him softly.

"NO! What do you mean?! We need to get out of here!" Zhao Li Xin looked around him for a way out.

Lory cupped his face and stared at him deeply, "I told you there would be a time that you will need to let me go."

"NO! I will not let you go!" Zhao Li Xin grasped her hand tightly. His heart raced a thousand miles an hour. His body trembled with fears as he desperately held her hand like his life depended on it.

Lory heart's ached as she watched him. The memory of her brother swirled in her mind. She bit her lip as she didn't want to inflict the same pain on anyone else again. She pulled his face close to her and kissed him gently. Her gaze was deep, "I'll come back. I promise you I'll come back to you."

"I'll be back before you finish counting to one hundred," Lory kissed his hand, smiled softly, and pulled her hand from Zhao Li Xin. He didn't have time to react as the warmth in his hand disappeared the same time the wall close to them split open. The light quickly dissipated when is closed behind Lory. It was like the light that was there before was nothing but a dream.

Bei Li Yan, Jin Hao, and the Mong brothers were unable to comprehend what happened. They had turned away for a second as the wind blew, and looked back to see their Lord fall on his knees with a harrowing expression. Zhao Li Xin's eyes were glued to the back of his own hands which felt cold and empty. Zhao Li Xin felt he had lost Lory once again despite wanting to keep her safe.

"Ri Yi…" Zhao clenched his fist as his heart felt hollow.

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Lory's eyelashes fluttered as she was unable to take in the blinding light. It took her a few seconds for her eyes to adjust. Girsha flew out and had perched himself on her shoulders. Lory blinked a few more times before she looked around. She sighed tiredly [We are here again…]

It was the same meadow she visited in her dreams. It had the same yellow and green wild grass with a bright blue sky. The dream was so detailed she almost forgot it was not real.

[Well, you wanted to pick her up, didn't you] Girsha teased her.

[Yeah…] Lory scratched her nose and quickened her pace. She was worried about Zhao Li Xin and how she left him behind the way she did. She hoped he would be alright until she returned. [Let's do this fast!]

Girsha nudged her head with his wing as they walked in a hurry [By the way, about the symbols… No one in this world could have known about them. I mean not many people in our world, Verrion, know about them too]

[I know! I guess it's all Arthea's doing. However, I don't know why she did this?] Lory furrowed her eyebrows. She had so many questions and she wondered if the seeress would be willing to answer her [I don't know what she was thinking!]

[We both know the story about Lealuna was a cover-up for something much darker] Girsha's eyes became solemn [Seven-eight-nine were the sacred numbers for an ancient seal. The number one was for the King or ruler blessed with divine power, and three…three is the number for a demon. What do we have if we combine everything together?]

[The Trinity staff] Lory sighed.

[The key that opens all seals in the world. A weapon made by a god himself] The Trinity staff was a mythical weapon way before it landed in Lory's hands. Everyone thought the weapon did not exist until Lory found it. Everyone congratulated Lory for her discovery but Marcus' expression at that time was inexplicable.

[But it broke when I opened Lazarus's seal. What's the point of bringing it up?] Lory was puzzled by everything happening around her.

[Did it?]