The silence in the room suggested Adrian had miscalculated sothing.
He really believed that Annabelle must have figured it out but her reaction said otherwise.
His eyes locked onto Annabelle’s widened gaze. Then he glanced at Ariana and Ruby, and both of them looked just as shocked.
Finally, the brown-haired man asked, "Wait... you didn’t figure it out?"
Annabelle stood up and moved toward Adrian. Resting her hands on his shoulders, she asked again, "Darling... are you sure about this? Am I really an Apostle?"
Adrian sighed and cald her first. "Being an Apostle isn’t a cri. And you can call it sothing else if the word bothers you."
He was regretting it now, telling her so casually about it. He should have treated this matter more sensitively.
"But that doesn’t change the fact that I belong to the sa category that destroyed your ho, does it?" Panic crept into her voice.
She slamd her hand against her forehead and began pacing around the room.
Her hurried steps were enough evidence to signify the turmoil he has caused to form inside her head.
Ruby hurriedly asked, "So when you said she was sohow connected to Nytharos, you ant she received a blessing from him?"
Adrian nodded. "I an, he couldn’t have children in the mortal plane, so of course it was his blessing that gave Annabelle the strength to rise through the ranks and beco one of the strongest back in that era."
He quickly added, "And her own efforts too. I’m not ignoring that."
Annabelle was naturally blessed but with just the blessing she wouldn’t have reached this stage. It was her own efforts that created the strongest Warden they all could see.
Adrian grimaced. "That’s not the point here." Glancing at the frenzied woman in the room, he continued, "You ntioned an Apostle attacked Raven’s plantations. You said they looked completely ensnared by the deity they follow."
Apostles were the closest mortals to the divine. If ordinary humans could show such loyalty, then it was only natural for those blessed by gods to grow devoted to an even greater extent.
Just then, Annabelle flinched and said, "Right... when that Acolyte got a hold of and I was about to lose control." She turned toward Adrian before finishing, "I heard a voice in my head. It felt so intimately close that I thought soone was standing right beside , even though there was no one there."
Adrian frowned and urged her, "What did it say?"
"Those words guided . Because of them, I stopped myself right before losing control and managed to handle everything calmly."
Ruby exchanged a glance with Ariana before asking, "Did you recognize that voice?"
Annabelle’s face went pale, and the silence that followed was answer enough.
Nytharos.
Now even Ruby and Ariana looked deeply concerned. One began tapping her foot against the floor, while the other chewed on her thumbnail in anxious habit.
anwhile, Adrian remained calm. He silently loaded the third healing bullet and aid it at Ruby.
The redhead looked up and asked, "Adrian... why are you this calm?"
Adrian shrugged. "I’ve known for a long ti that Annabelle’s threads of fate are connected to the Fallen One. That’s why, for a brief mont, when I saw his head roll to my feet, I was scared."
Annabelle stopped mid-step and turned to look at him.
Adrian sighed and said, "Look, at the mont, we know those deities are our enemy. Darkness wasn’t, or at least that’s what I was told. But Nytharos stands in a grey zone."
Shaking his head, he added, "I can tell he’ll tip to whichever side benefits him." Running a hand through his hair, he continued, "We know his brothers are supporting him. The Umbral incident is a clear example. But Nytharos wouldn’t have helped realize my origin if he were truly on their side."
Darkness was a terror to those deities. And for Nytharos to let the only remnant of that existence learn the truth, to let Adrian see things from a different perspective rather than what they had been taught all their lives, that was exactly what made Nytharos’s stance so unclear.
"Then... Annabelle falling under his control is inevitable?" Ariana asked. It was a hard question, one that hurt her deeply and made her dread the answer.
Adrian crossed his arms and said, "There’s no known thod to remove a blessing from soone. It isn’t sothing a Runesmith or any other human could achieve. Nytharos has most likely imprinted her soul. So yes, we can’t separate the two, no matter how much we want to."
Annabelle fell to her knees, her eyes growing moist. "Then... one day, will he force to harm you too, Darling?" Her voice trembled with horror. She had seen the absolute obedience Apostles showed toward their masters.
She trusted her own will, yet she could not be certain it would withstand his command.
Just like today, Nytharos’s words had felt like a hidden door opening in her mind, allowing her to wield her powers with far greater control.
Then... was it really going to happen? Would she and her Darling one day...
"Bella, listen to carefully first." Adrian crouched in front of her and cupped her cheek. "Tell , is there a single person in this room who truly has complete independence of will?"
He turned toward Ruby and Ariana before continuing. "If those deities wished it, they could strip them of their ability to use mana right now."
Then he looked back into her eyes and added, "And the worst case here is , Bella. I carry the essence of Darkness. Forget the day it might fully awaken. If I were to lose control of my emotions, I’d beco just like him, consud by darkness and severed from all the beautiful emotions and mories I once had."
"But do I look worried to you?" he asked her.
Still weeping, she looked up into his eyes.
All she saw there was warmth and calm.
Sniffling, she asked, "Darling... why can’t we just live the way we want? Why does soone else get to decide our fate?"
Adrian chuckled softly and pulled her into his arms. "Who said I’m letting soone else decide our fate?" Rubbing her back, he reassured her, "There’s no known path to remove a blessing from a person, but if it stops you from living a normal life, I’ll find a way. Trust ."
Shaking his head, he added, "Don’t worry, Bella. Nothing will co between us and the dream we’ve all seen. I’ll create a peaceful world for all of us. Just keep your faith in ."
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