Chapter 435: The Forgotten Past - XXIX

[Music recommendation: Ruelle - Come Fly With Me]

The sight only fueled Gavriel’s fury.

Fire erupted around his body, incinerating the vines, but more of them rapidly burst from the ground, binding him tighter and feeding on his powers as Bellarios continued to roar in agony.

As Gavriel thrashed to break free, he roared at the sky, "Father! What do you think you are doing?!"

Raizel simply pressed his glowing palms together, answering in a solemn voice, "Doing what I must to protect our people."

Right as he did, Bellarios’s form began to shrink as he continued to struggle against the King’s power.

Gavriel threw back his head and let out a painful scream as blood began to drip from his mouth. He could feel his powers being sealed by Raizel. He struggled against it, but that only caused the Netherblooms around him to drain his power more aggressively.

With Bellarios forcefully driven back inside Gavriel’s body, Raizel materialised directly in front of his struggling son, who was in unbearable agony and on the brink of complete madness.

He looked at Gavriel with pain in his eyes, knowing that sealing half of Gavriel’s powers while both he and Bellarios were in such a distressed state was bound to have negative repercussions.

It would make Bellarios far more aggressive, especially after the beast had already gone mad from losing his mate. This would only make it harder for Gavriel to control him in the future, particularly on a full moon night... the night he had lost everything.

But Raizel also knew he could not afford to be soft now, even though he himself had been shocked when Lilith had whispered in his ear, asking him to seal half of Gavriel’s powers before plunging the dagger into her own heart.

He had not understood her then, but he knew Lilith understood far more than they did. She knew things the others could not.

And so, here he was.

Letting out a shaky breath, Raizel spoke in a trembling voice, "Calm yourself, my son. Fight no longer."

With those words, Raizel extended his hand forward, and the single rose that Lilith had given him appeared. As his gentler power swirled around the stem, the petals began to glow with soft light before drifting outward. The glowing petals encircled Gavriel’s distressed form, enveloping him like a lover’s embrace.

The remaining princes gathered nearby, watching the unbelievable sight in complete shock.

Slowly, the violent frenzy consuming Gavriel began to subside.

Collapsing forward, Gavriel opened his eyes to stare blankly at his father.

An empty, broken whisper escaped his lips, "Just... kill me... Father. I..." Another tear of blood escaped his hollow eyes. "...I cannot live without her... please..."

Tears welled in Raizel’s eyes as he understood the depth of his son’s despair. "I cannot do that."

Gavriel weakly shook his head. "I’ll destroy everything... this world... it took her from me! We...both want blood... so please kill me while you have the chance."

Just then, the Grand Oracle Isolde appeared before Gavriel. She bowed her head respectfully despite him being restrained like a prisoner and said, "Your Highness, I must tell you... your wife, Princess Hera, made an unbreakable vow to be reborn again."

Gavriel momentarily stilled as she continued, "The blood moon above is its witness. Its colour tells you that her vow has been accepted. She will return, no matter what."

Something that had died inside Gavriel flickered for even a tiny amount upon hearing about Hera.

Isolde continued, "However, I have had another vision... she will not be born in the Underworld."

"Why?!" Gavriel found his voice.

"Her soul was powerful, destined to do great things, as though she were a gift from the universe. Since this very realm, where she was born, failed to value that gift... fate has a peculiar way of protecting what it has given. She will be reborn... but she will remain hidden until her time comes," Isolde explained.

"Where... where will she be then?" Gavriel demanded, his voice trembling.

"In the world of the living."

Gavriel did not hesitate for a second and looked at his father. "Let me go. I’ll be wherever she will be. Let me go, Father."

"But Your Highness, when will she be born next... we don’t have any idea. It could be a century later or a thousand or even longer. His Majesty would not be able to give you permission to stay in the world of the living for so long. The Underworld will pull you back," Isolde informed him.

"I don’t care how long it takes! I would rather be in a place permanently where she will be born than to live in the land that is soaked with her blood!" Gavriel spat in anger.

All the princes were shocked by his words, but Raizel showed no surprise.

Lilith had already told him not to stop Gavriel, for she herself was going there.

How much Raizel cursed himself for being a devil, for being bound to the realm, unable to leave after his own mate.

Still, it was his duty to tell his son, "Are you sure what you ask of me, Gavriel? You are the Crown Prince... the devil meant to rule after me. To leave everything and go to the world of the living means you can never come back. Not only that... you will need to sacrifice something that is most precious to you."

Gavriel met his father’s sorrowful eyes with a heartbreaking smile. "She was the only thing most precious to me. With her gone... I have nothing left to lose. Take what you may..."

Raizel kept his silent eyes fixed on his son before they glowed, and a massive magical circle swirled under Gavriel, allowing the Devil to see what would be taken as the price of his sacrifice.

"The price will be the loss of all your memories of her and everything related to her. You may not even remember what happened today or why you chose to leave. No one will be able to tell you, either, as the laws of nature will forbid them from speaking of it. Should anyone attempt to tell you, or should you try to remember, you will both experience unbearable pain.

Not only that... once you cross over, there is a high possibility that you will suffer other side effects, as you will be the first royal to relinquish your rights to this realm. Most of your powers will remain sealed by the spell I’ve used, and... even I can no longer undo what has been done."

Raizel paused and asked again, "Are you sure you still want to go through with this... you’ll be abandoning your entire future, son."

Gavriel hesitated only for a moment, thinking about his beloved memories being taken from him.

But then again, he had no doubt in his mind... he would find her. He knew with absolute certainty that his soul would recognise her, even if he were reduced to an empty shell.

So he replied, "Yes... if that is what it takes to meet her again... I’m ready to make this sacrifice. Take it and let me go."

Belial, with tears in his eyes, stepped forward and whispered, "Riel... brother...don’t..."

Gavriel looked at him and offered him a faint, bittersweet smile. His eyes drifted to each of his other three brothers and over the vast destruction he had caused, before finally settling his gaze on Raizel. "Let this be my punishment for all the blood of our people on my hands. Do it."

A lone tear escaped Raizel’s eyes as he gave a heavy nod. Raising both hands, the sky churned violently, opening a massive vortex directly above Gavriel. Their hair whipped wildly in the wind as Raizel spoke his final words: "Farewell... my son."

Gavriel closed his eyes, surrendering himself to his choice as he whispered, "Farewell..."

A black tornado crackling with crimson electricity descended over Gavriel, pulling him up into the storm.

And just like that... the devil who was destined to rule the Underworld willingly let go of everything, pursuing the only person who gave him a reason to breathe.

There was not a single person present there who did not grieve Gavriel’s departure to another realm.

Afterwards, the King issued a royal decree forbidding anyone from speaking of Gavriel or Hera’s past, and destroying all records of their history to protect them until the truth could come to light at the right time.

People speculated that Gavriel had been banished for bringing destruction upon the realm. Others believed Hera had used her powers to harm the prince, which was why he had killed her before losing his mind. The reason Prince Malakov had been imprisoned on the seventh level remained a mystery to them.

Those who knew the truth could never speak of it. They could only continue living, carrying their grief in silence.

Yet none could comprehend the truth behind Queen Lilith’s death. They believed she had simply succumbed to her curse, while King Raizel had somehow survived it and had not followed her in death.

Unbeknownst to them... on that very night of the full moon, Lilith’s soul had made one final stop at the household of Theron and Seraphine Piersmont.

"Please... go after my son. Make sure he stays safe, Seraphine."

Seraphine, who held her almost two-year-old son Cillian sleeping peacefully in her arms, asked with tear-filled eyes, "And what of you, Your Majesty?"

"I will be around... but Gavriel must never know about me, understood?" Lilith’s soul instructed.

Seraphine and Theron bowed their heads reverently. "Your wish is our command."

Lilith offered a grateful smile. "One final request..." She extended her hand, and a small wooden box materialised in her palm. "Make sure... wherever Gavriel settles, you bury the contents of this box close to him."

"What is inside it?" Seraphine asked, looking at the box with curiosity.

"I cannot say... but you must do this as soon as he establishes his home. It will help him during the nights of the full moon," Lilith answered cryptically, and the couple knew better than to press further.

Accepting the box, the couple carried out the Queen’s final request.

Soon after, they crossed into the world of the living with their young son Cillian, taking the name Pierce and dedicating their lives to serving Gavriel in every way possible.

That marked the beginning of a long, lost, lonely journey of the devil... until he met a feisty woman with long golden hair who smelled like roses... just like in his forgotten, precious past.

**End of the Past**