"Bwahahahahahaha!"
The sky above the Exelio Estate was filled with thick clouds that blocked even the faintest hint of light from reaching the place. The wind around swooshed over the trees, and thunder loudly roared across the sky.
The air smelled like rain and blood.
Inside the estate, hundreds of lifeless bodies were lying on the ground. The sound of swords clashed through the hall, and you could hear the cries of wounded people in the background.
Flames flickered along the windows, painting the once grand corridor in fire and ash.
At the center of the estate stood Lionel. The Young Duke of the Exelio family. His armor was now dented, and the silver sword in his hand was dripping with blood. His breathing was ragged, while his body was trembling with exhaustion.
As he glanced around, he could see his men falling to their deaths one after another.
He had once called this place home. However, now, it was nothing but a mere grave.
"Lionel Silvestre Exelio!"
A loud voice burst through the grand staircase. Lionel turned his head to the side, only to meet the cold and proud gaze of his cousin, Cassian Alexander Vaeloria. He was the current emperor of the Vaeloria Empire.
Cassian walked down the steps slowly. Behind him, there were lines of royal guards following him around. All of them were holding onto their own swords, ready to attack once he said his word.
"You're already surrounded, Lionel," Cassian said calmly as the sides of his lips rose to a small smile.
"Surrender your sword. By the order of the crown, you are charged with treason."
"Treason? Did you lose your mind?" Lionel let out a bitter laugh.
"You plotted against the throne. You fed secrets to our enemies. You tried to seduce my wife. What else would you call it?" Cassian's smirk didn't fade at all.
Lionel's grip tightened on his sword. "You know that all of those are lies!"
"Enough!" Cassian snapped out loud. "Just admit it, Lionel. You've always wanted more than your place!"
Lightning flashed through the shattered windows just after Cassian said those words. In that short burst of light, Lionel saw something in Cassian's eyes—hunger and hatred. Emotions that he didn't know where they came from.
"Cassian…" Lionel said quietly, almost in disbelief. That was when it slowly sank in to him. "You planned all of this..."
"You should've stayed under my shadows, Lionel. Forever. Never for the world to know." Cassian tilted his head slightly. He raised his hand, and the guards behind him quickly rushed forward.
Lionel roared and met them head-on. The other guards went to the rest of his men who were still alive. Sword clashed against sword.
The floor became covered with blood as Lionel's side desperately tried to stay alive. Lionel, on his own, struck down soldier after soldier, but there were just too many.
A spear grazed his shoulder. A sword cut across his leg. And slowly, pain filled all his senses. But, he refused to fall without a fight.
It was not until Cassian drew his own blade and fought Lionel on his own. Having similar build and strength, the two of them fought fiercely. Each swing of their sword was filled with anger, pride, and years of hidden contempt.
"You always thought you were better than me, don't you?" Cassian hissed out loud before forcing Lionel back.
"What can I do? I was indeed better than you," Lionel answered before blocking the next blow.
Cassian smiled darkly. "Not anymore."
He faked a step to the left, then drove his sword into Lionel's side.
"Ugh," Lionel gasped as he fell to one knee. His sword slipped from his hand while his eyes stared at the sword that was now embedded in his chest.
Cassian leaned close to his face and whispered, "Remember this, Lionel. The kingdom will remember you as a traitor. They'll know you as a puppet who tried to rebel. And I'll make sure no one dares speak your name again."
Cassian let out a short laugh afterward that echoed across the burning estate. He straightened his back and pushed Lionel's body to the ground. Lionel hopelessly slumped on the ground.
"Tell me, Lionel," Cassian smiled as he wiped the blood from his sword with a cloth handed to him by one of his guards. "Do you still remember the death of your father?"
Lionel completely froze at that.
"And your lowly mother, who was poisoned. Such a tragedy, wasn't it?"
Lionel's eyes widened. His breathing stopped for a moment as he lay on the ground.
"Poor Lionel. The loyal duke who never even knew that his beloved cousin was the one who planned it all along." Cassian grinned.
Something inside Lionel broke. His chest tightened as anger surged through him, hotter than the flames around them.
"Y-you…" his voice trembled. "You bastard!"
He tried to grab his sword, his hand shaking as he reached for it. His fingers brushed on the hilt, but his strength completely failed him. With his sudden movement, his breathing just became more shallow.
"Pft- You should see yourself right now," Cassian laughed out loud in disgust. "You look so desperate that it disgusts me."
Lionel tried once more to push himself up, but his arm shook and gave out.
Cassian crouched down just in front of him. When he realized that Lionel was completely helpless now, his smirk widened.
"Do you want me to tell you one more secret?" he asked in a low and taunting voice.
"W-what secret…?" Lionel forced out a breath. His body was starting to get numb already from all the injuries he sustained.
"I hated you from the very day you were born." Cassian just looked at Lionel's current state.
"…"
As soon as he said that, Cassian turned his back.
"The show is done. End this," he ordered his guards. "Kill everyone left in this estate. Leave nothing standing. Tomorrow, we will announce to the whole empire that the great Duke of Exelio has rebelled against the empire."
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
With that, Cassian walked away in joy.
Lionel's vision blurred again. All he could hear now was the guards marching around and the screams of his remaining people as they were brutally killed.
Left alone, Lionel could only stare at the grand ceiling above him. There was nothing left for him. He was already useless and on the verge of death.
'I guess this is my end,' he thought bitterly.
Just as when he was about to close his eyes, something suddenly glowed from his body.
From his chest, a small blue light began to glow. It was his necklace. A necklace that was given to him by his mother.
Lionel's half-closed eyes widened slightly.
"W-what… i-is t-this?" he whispered weakly.
Just then, the blue light grew stronger, almost blinding. It flew in the air, and suddenly a blue hourglass appeared in front of him.
"Am I seeing things now?" He muttered as his trembling hand reached toward it. When his hand touched it, the light suddenly surrounded his fingers too. Before he could even understand what was happening, the blue hourglass floated in the air.
At the same time, Lionel's body became more heavy each passing second. His eyelids started to close, and his heartbeat slowed down after every breath.
And in his mind, he only had one thought.
He didn't want to die like this.
No… not here… not like this…
"I don't want to die like this… Let me return… to the past." His voice trembled as he spoke.
The hourglass turned, and the sand inside it slowly fell as if it were listening to him.
"Yes… just like that hourglass," he muttered weakly with his eyes fixed on the hourglass. "If I could go back… I-I'll c-change everything…"
The hourglass's sand dropped faster the more he spoke.
"I won't be deceived again…" Lionel said with gritted teeth. "I'll save my father and mother… and… and—"
Before he could finish, a blinding blue light swallowed everything.
Then—
"Lionel! Are you listening to what I'm saying?!"
Lionel's eyes snapped open..
Huh?
Lionel blinked.
Am I dreaming?
He was now sitting at a long dining table. Across from him were his mother and his father, who had their forehead creased as they watched Lionel closely.
The two looked tall in his sight.
This… this couldn't be real. Lionel froze, his hands trembling on the table.
"Lionel, your teacher have told me that you skipped classes again! What am I going to do with you, huh?" His father's voice boomed with anger.
Lionel's lips parted open while his heart pounded.
Did I go back to the past?