Slap!
With his skilled reflexes, Ery unconsciously caught Gwen's arm midair, stopping her attack. The situation had instantly turned more awkward, with him clutching the princess' arm tightly and being in such close proximity to her.
Why are you hitting ?! Those were the first words that ca to mind, but his intuition told him there had to be a reason behind this, as he could practically feel Gwen's emotions bubbling behind the surface.
The princess looked to be in a raging tantrum, but standing this close to her, Ery saw tears reflected in her eyes. She pulled herself away from his grasp in a forceful motion.
"You…!" Her anger was so visceral she could just barely choke out her words. "Why did you lie to ?! Lanzo! Ery! rlin! Who are you, really?!"
It appeared she had been repressing these questions for a long ti and was now finally able to hurl them back at him with seething venom.
Ery drew in a deep breath, trying to preserve his composure. After all, it was an answer she already knew.
"They're all , all the sa. Calm down and I'll explain..."
"Calm down?! Ery, I... I thought you were dead ! ...twice! And now you're just strolling around like nothing happened... why? Why are you hiding from ?"
Her outburst had begun to slow down, this ti into a genuine show of anguish and confusion.
"I thought you were dead... why are you hiding?"
Hering this, Ery answered.
"Hiding..??.? Of course I am hiding… my father, my family… they're all dead! I was being hunted down. Of course I'm hiding!"
"Ery... you should've co to ... and my father, we could have helped you!"
"Your father…? Oh, forgive your highness, but it was the kingdom who wanted dead!"
By this ti, his facade of calmness had already shattered. His voice was raised to a resentful shout.
"It was the people around you who wanted dead!"
Gwen was in shock, in a state of half-belief about what she had just heard. She began to tremble as she started speaking again.
"What about …? You can trust … Ery... We have known each other for so long… You can trust ..."
Flinching at her words, Ery closed his eyes. The mory of her on that night two years ago imdiately rushed back into his mind. Upon opening his eyes, he stared intently at her, trying to regain the mirage of composure he had put on before.
"Trust you? Did you rember the last ti we spoke? You said we couldn't be friends anymore… Don't tell you forgot about that! You didn't want anything to do with cause I am a Fey! Just admit it!, you said it clearly that night!"
Ery finally felt as though his pain could be expressed tonight. He felt such relief.
Temporarily feeling a slight triumph in his admission, a mont later, the tears that were welling in Gwen's eyes had started to flow freely down her cheeks.
"You fool, Ery... You hate for that? I... My mother died because of Fey, can't I have one night of mistakes?"
She stops for a second and continues
"I am sorry for what I said, I really am. There's not a day that goes by that I don't regret what I said…"
She gasped, attempting to hold back her tears.
"And you know what's worse? You went missing right after, presumably dead... How could I ask for forgiveness from a dead person?! You didn't give a chance... you were dead!"
These words struck sothing deep inside him. They reverberated throughout his body, making him quiver with emotions. All these years, he had been waiting for her apology for that night. But when it ca out like this, Ery wasn't sure he wanted to hear it anymore.
He couldn't accept it… why? Why couldn't he accept her apology…?
Ery was conflicted. Overwheld, he began to speak.
"So… What now?"
His hands began to shake. "Are you saying you could accept a Fey now? You want to be involved with the people that killed your mother?"
Gwen was stunned into stillness at being asked such a question so abruptly. She shifted in uncertainty.
"Tell princess, will the kingdom ever accept ? A Fey boy? No, no... I bet even Lanzo, the young silver knight who gave glory to Lioness... I doubt even he could be welco well if he was a Fey! Right?!"
This ti, Ery had pushed Gwen to her limit. She didn't have the answer, so instead she once again regained her composure, yelling back her response.
"What do you care! What does Lanzo care! I thought Lanzo didn't want anything to do with the kingdom! Don't make up things when the truth is… the truth is… you just don't care about the kingdom… about…" she abruptly paused, as if mustering up the courage to utter the words she was about to say. "You care about nothing but yourself!"
Hearing it from soone else, Ery realized she was speaking the truth. At the mont, his main priority was the Magus Academy. He didn't even care that much about Fantumar anymore. As far as he was concerned, those kings and ministers could just kill off one another, fighting for their stupid titles and thrones.
Ery took a deep breath and said "You are right. That is true."
Gwen's face fell, expression lting from genuine anger to a wounded disappointnt.
"Then I suppose there really is no point in arguing with you about this," she said and continue
"You do whatever you want and you can return to being dead for . Let us both agree to never cross paths again."
Ery could feel a sudden pain blossom in his chest, as though he had been stabbed. His skin was flushed with emotion, hot to the touch. He replied,
"Fine… it's probably what's best for both of us."
Gwen closed her eyes, forcing herself to calm down. Wiping the tears from her cheeks, she regained her composure, as regal and princess-like as ever.
"For what it's worth, Ery, I really did miss you… And I'm glad that you're alive."
She t his eyes once more, this ti with a sense of finality in her gaze.
"Good bye, Ery."
She turned around, leaving him standing there, feeling hollowed out and more exhausted than ever. That evening, he received word that Gwen had apparently decided to leave the Quintins' estate with all her knights, not even saying a word to Arthur.
Ery did feel sothing in his heart shift, but he tried his best to suppress his thoughts.
"It's for the best"
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