When Haru lost consciousness. He heard a woman's voice echo faintly in his mind.
"From your feelings, something will soon be born… something that will make your power ignite a new spark."
Moments later, he woke up in Shion's arms. Blinking slowly, he looked straight into his eyes.
Shion was about to carry him out of the underground chamber.
"Shion, please put me down," Haru said gently.
"No, you need to be checked, and-"
"I'm fine," Haru smiled. "It's sweet how much you worry about me."
Shion sighed but finally set him down. Haru kissed him softly, then asked to go back to the room they had just left.
He approached the desk again. Haru noticed that the notebook Ayame had left behind had a strange magical aura - neither good nor bad, just… weird. Still, Haru decided to take it with him.
"Haru, are you sure you want to deal with that?" Shion asked. "Those notes contain every bit of knowledge from our library about the curse, but even I couldn't understand them."
"I'll do it for you," Haru said with a smile.
Shion nodded, touched by his words.
"I'll help however I can."
A short while later, they both returned to their chamber.
*
Later that night…
Haru sat at the desk, the gentle light of a candle flickering across his face. Shion was already asleep. Haru opened Ayame's notebook and tried to make sense of the first page, but the words were incomprehensible.
This is total nonsense.
"The binding of the curse to a direct soul turned into a divine aspect of condemnation: possibly not punishment, but rather the absence of a magical mediator that channels astral energy in real time into an unexplained outer realm called factor X. If factor X lacks n (where n is the hereditary curse value passed through the Hoshigane line), then the curse–"
Haru stopped reading out loud. He hoped that saying it would somehow help him understand.
It didn't.
Looks like I'll have to put in a lot more work to understand this than I expected… but I know Shion will help me. We're in this together.
He sighed softly, changed into his nightgown, and lay down beside Shion, curling up next to him.
*
Ayame went to the Forbidden Library for one reason only.
Not to find more books about curses, she had already read everything there was to read. Every book, every page, every verse. And yet, she still felt lost in the dark.
A day that shouldn't have existed, the murder of two gods, and the appearance of a mysterious woman who was more than just a manifestation of the curse – all of it had made things worse.
She felt like she knew even less than when she started.
Ayame came to the Forbidden Library not for new knowledge, but to meet someone: Hoshizuma, the librarian. She didn't have to look long, he welcomed her at the entrance.
"Ah, young Hoshigane. I was expecting you," he said with a smile.
Hoshizuma was tall and thin, with long straight brown hair and eerie pink eyes that gleamed with something demonic. His red-and-gold kimono was patterned with shifting clouds.
"Don't even try to charm me, you bastard. Cut the bullshit and get to the point," Ayame snapped, her face hard with anger.
"Oh, that's not very nice. Calling your former teacher names like that," he said in mock offense.
"You were never my teacher, and I'll never think of you that way! You were just a scum who once took advantage of me being young and naïve that one time. You know why I'm here, Hoshizuma."
"Could it be that the wise Ayame has finally run into a problem she can't solve alone? You know my guidance always comes with a price."
"I don't care about the future anymore. I just want a solution – right here, right now – something that will free the next generations from the pain that's tormenting me and Shion. Even if it costs me everything."
"I always liked that fiery side of yours," Hoshizuma said with a sly grin. He closed his eyes and focused inward.
When he opened them again, they glowed with the light of distant galaxies. The entire underground chamber of the Forbidden Library shook.
"When the spark that wasn't meant to exist appears in the sky, you must see it as it opens its eyes. Only then will the answer come. But if you're too late… all will be lost." His eyes returned to normal as he finished speaking. "Now: it's time for your payment."
"What do you want?" Ayame asked coldly.
"From you? Nothing much," he said, extending his hand.
The stairs and doorway behind Ayame vanished, replaced by another corridor full of endless bookshelves.
"Then why did you trap me here?!" she shouted, losing control. "Tell me right now!"
Her hand glowed with golden light as she raised it toward him.
"Oh, calm down. You know you can't win against me, young Hoshigane. I just needed to make sure you wouldn't interfere."
"Huh? What are you planning?" she shouted, panic creeping into her voice.
Hoshizuma's smile turned demonic.
"Think of the star that wasn't supposed to exist. Let's say I'll summon Jupiter to take a closer look at… star's ancestors. To see if they truly are…" He paused, smirking. "…heaven and earth to each other."
"Give me one good reason not to kill you right now," Ayame hissed through clenched teeth.
"First, you can't. If we fight, you'll be the one who dies. Second, your payment has already been done. You can't leave until Jupiter's observation ends."
"What the hell are you talking about?"
"You'll see soon enough. Maybe a little too clearly, even. You can watch it happen with me. If heaven and earth withstand Jupiter's charm… then nothing will stop the light of the star that should never have been."
Ayame sighed in frustration. She was trapped, and Hoshizuma's riddles were as infuriating as ever.
She had a suspicion about what he really meant, but refused to let herself believe it.
She couldn't bear the thought that, because of her, Shion and Haru might be in danger again.
*
A few days later…
Shion had to attend a meeting with a minister. He didn't wake Haru, knowing it wasn't anything important enough to bother him with.
Maldie had taken the day off due to illness, so this morning Haru had to take care of himself.
He sat at Shion's desk, brushing his hair and looking at his reflection in a gilded mirror.
This week has been amazing… I feel more important than ever… and so many romantic things happened!
Yesterday, Shion made a surprise lunch just for me. It was so sweet, I couldn't even… and he went all out! I felt so bad for the chefs, they must've been cooking forever just for us!
And every evening we walk through the royal gardens together, holding each other close, kissing intensely, and… just learning more about each other.
Once… we even made love there. It was so… wonderful. I don't even know how to describe it.
Haru sighed, staring at his reflection.
Maybe it would've been better if Shion had married Aki. At least they could've had children… but with me… there won't be anything left of our love but things and memories.
Still, everything's happening so fast… and it feels like we fall more in love with each other every single day. I'm happy… but I just wish something of us could last.
Why do I even have such gloomy thoughts after such an amazing week?
He sighed again.
Suddenly, a woman's voice echoed in his head:
Your wish has been granted.
"Huh?!" Haru gasped aloud.
What wish? I was just thinking random things!
Haru, completely thrown off, couldn't make sense of what his wish was about. Figuring he'd worry later, he finished brushing his hair and moved on to his makeup.
He'd just finished putting on his makeup when Shion entered the room, looking slightly annoyed.
"What happened?" Haru asked.
"Nothing," Shion replied, staring at him for a moment.
Then he took of his veil, stepped closer, and kissed Haru with pure, burning desire.
"Sh-Shion?! Are you sure everything's alright?" Haru stammered, breathless from the sudden intensity.
Ugh, great. Why did I even bother putting on lipstick if he's just going to kiss it all off?
Next thing Haru knew, they were in bed.
*
A month later…
Shion was walking around nervously while the doctor examined Haru.
"Shion, relax," Maldie said, trying to calm him down. "Maybe Haru just ate something bad."
"Food poisoning doesn't last for weeks. And Haru keeps vomiting every morning. That would mean someone's been drugging him regularly," Shion said angrily. "And when I find out who, I'll tear them apart."
"Don't worry. I'm here, so no need to freak out," said Gari, who was also in the room. Shion had asked her to stay, just in case the doctor, despite being trusted, tried anything suspicious.
For weeks, Shion had been losing sleep over Haru's strange condition. None of the medicines worked. No one could figure out what was wrong, so Shion was starting to get a little paranoid.
This doctor, the most skilled and expensive in the kingdom, was his last hope.
The doctor finally finished examining Haru.
"Well?" Shion asked sharply. Maldie and Gari exchanged looks, none of them had ever seen him this on edge.
"It's surprising that no one noticed earlier," the doctor said. "says a lot about the state of our medicine, but to be fair, this is… quite an unusual case."
"So?! What's wrong with him?!" Shion asked sharply at first, but then he caught himself and tried to calm down . "Please… tell me."
"Well, Your Majesty… despite being male, your… queen appears to be pregnant."
"What?!" Haru, Gari, and Maldie all exclaimed at once.
Shion turned to glare at the doctor, but the man raised his hand calmly and used vital magic. A soft glow revealed a faint new life forming inside Haru's belly.
Shion froze, overwhelmed by disbelief and a surprising joy.
He looked at Haru, then at Maldie and Gari, who looked just as shocked as he was.