Chapter 84: Ch 84. Dorven Stongz’s Mother?

The golden light continued to spread, illuminating the entire backyard of the Lion Palace. Several servants standing guard in the distance couldn’t even resist coming closer, curious about what was happening there.

Selena herself didn’t dare take her eyes off Dorven. Although he was still able to smile and answer her questions, his physical condition was clearly not entirely well.

More and more black smoke was billowing from his body, while the holy fire continued to burn every wisp that managed to escape.

However, the longer the process went on, the more Selena noticed something that worried her.

The black smoke wasn’t diminishing.

On the contrary, every time one part disappeared, another part emerged from Dorven’s body, as if the source of the curse lay deep within him.

"This is strange," Selena muttered.

Dorven opened his eyes. "What’s strange?" he asked, looking at Selena, who had been silent for a moment.

"The book says that the holy fire will purify the curse inside your body, right?" Selena pointed at the black smoke that kept appearing. "But so far, your curse hasn’t shown any signs of fading. I even feel like there’s more of it."

Dorven frowned. "If that’s the case, does that mean this method isn’t working?"

"I can’t say for sure yet."

Selena picked up the book they’d brought with them and immediately opened it to the page describing the healing method.

She reread every sentence carefully, hoping to find something she’d overlooked. However, the longer she read, the deeper the furrow on her brow became.

"Wait a minute," Selena muttered, pausing at a small paragraph at the bottom of the page.

The text was slightly different from the rest, written in an ancient language she didn’t fully understand. Fortunately, the knowledge inherited along with this body allowed her to grasp most of its meaning.

"The sacred fire can only purify a curse that is willing to leave its host’s body. If the curse originates from a higher source, the purification will only take place once that source is found," Selena said, reading the sentence aloud.

She even repeated it several times before lifting her face and looking at Dorven.

"It seems there’s a problem."

"What kind of problem?"

"Your curse might not be an ordinary one. Do you remember the last time you experienced this curse and were forbidden from expressing your emotions?"

Dorven fell silent, his brow furrowed. For a moment, only the sound of the fire could be heard between them.

"I’ve lived with this curse since I was a child," he said finally. "The healers from the Lion clan examined me, but none of them could find the cause. They only said that I was born without the ability to feel emotions like other lions."

Selena looked at him seriously. "Since you were a child?"

"Yes."

"Did you ever feel anything before the curse appeared?"

Dorven was silent for quite a while. "I don’t know," he replied, causing Selena to furrow her brow.

Dorven looked down, staring at his hands submerged in the glowing liquid.

"Before I became aware of it, there were a few childhood memories I still recall. I used to run with my siblings, play in the palace courtyard, and see my mother smile at me. However, I can’t remember how I felt at the time."

He paused for a moment.

"I know I should have felt happy when playing with them. I know I should have felt sad when my mother died. But all of that is just knowledge. I’ve never truly felt what I was supposed to feel."

Selena fell silent; she had never imagined that Dorven’s life was actually like that. All this time, she had regarded him as a king who was accustomed to getting everything he wanted.

A man with immense power who lived a carefree life, yet could determine the life and death of others with a single decision.

However, if Dorven had truly been unable to feel emotions since childhood, the life he’d led might have been far different from what she’d imagined.

Even so, Selena didn’t immediately feel pity for him. After all, a person’s suffering doesn’t automatically erase the mistakes they’ve made.

"I’d like to ask you something, if I may," said Selena.

"Go ahead."

"Have you ever felt an emotion so strong that it was beyond your control—even just once?"

Dorven lifted his head upon hearing this. This time, he remained silent long enough for his gaze to shift to Selena, as if he were trying to recall something long buried in his mind.

"There’s one strange incident I still remember."

"What was it?"

"When I found out you were going to be executed at the Eldoria court."

Selena froze for a moment. She hadn’t expected to hear that answer at all.

Dorven continued, "I don’t know what I was feeling at that moment. I just know that when I heard the court’s decision, something felt off in my chest."

The man furrowed his brow, seemingly trying to make sense of the memory he was recounting.

"I should have felt relieved because back then you didn’t have healing abilities yet. However, when I saw you standing before everyone after your powers had awakened, I actually found myself wanting to know what you would do next."

Selena stared at him without blinking.

"And after you successfully proved your abilities as a Healer of Extinction, that feeling became even stranger. I wanted to know more about you, but I didn’t understand why."

Dorven sighed. "That’s why I’m not sure if everything I’m feeling is actually an emotion or just ordinary curiosity."

Selena didn’t respond right away. She knew she wasn’t the right person to answer all of Dorven’s questions. In fact, she herself was still trying to understand so many things about this world.

However, one possibility suddenly crossed her mind.

"What if your curse doesn’t actually make you lose your emotions?" she said, causing Dorven to look at her.

"What do you mean?"

"What if the curse is actually suppressing your emotions, so you’re unable to recognize or feel them properly?" Selena asked, pointing to the black smoke still rising from his body. "If you’ve truly been emotionless since birth, I don’t understand why the holy fire could draw something like this out of your body. Doesn’t that mean there’s been something all along blocking your ability to feel emotions?"

Dorven fell silent, realizing a possibility he’d never considered was now before him. What if he hadn’t actually been born without emotions after all?

What if someone had deliberately taken something from him?

Before Dorven could say anything, the sacred flame inside the stone vessel suddenly flared up intensely.

Whoosh!

Selena immediately took a step back.

The black smoke gathered above Dorven’s head suddenly took the shape of a human figure. This time, the form was much clearer than before.

A woman with long hair stood in the midst of the flames. Her face was indistinct, but the clothes she wore resembled the attire of ancient nobility.

Dorven’s eyes widened instantly, his body tensing.

"What’s happening?" Selena quickly turned to him.

However, Dorven seemed not to hear her question. He stared at the figure with an expression Selena had never seen before.

"Impossible..." Dorven’s voice was so soft it was almost drowned out by the sound of the fire.

Selena looked back at the woman’s figure.

"Who is she? Do you know her?"

Dorven didn’t answer.

The woman slowly raised her face. Her dark eyes fixed on Dorven, then her lips moved as if she were about to say something.

The voice that emerged was faint, as if coming from behind a very thick wall.

"My son..."

Selena was startled.

My son?

The woman reached out her hand toward Dorven. "Please forgive me..."

The flames suddenly flared up, engulfing the woman’s entire body before Selena could get a clear look at her face.

At the same moment, Dorven gripped the rim of the stone vessel.

"Wait!"

His voice boomed across the courtyard.

The servants who witnessed the incident immediately dropped to their knees in fear.

Selena was startled as well. She didn’t know what was happening, but she could see that Dorven was truly shaken.

The man who was usually so calm was now staring at the flames with eyes ablaze, his entire body trembling.

"Dorven, calm down!"

Selena immediately approached the vessel.

"Don’t go near the fire!" Dorven snapped when he saw her coming closer.

Selena’s eyes widened instantly. The man was channeling his emotions, but in Selena’s view, his condition remained stable. He didn’t appear to be experiencing any decline.

"Back off, Selena! This is real fire, not holy fire that doesn’t feel hot! Don’t mess around here!" he shouted again, causing Selena to glare at him in annoyance.

"You think I’m messing around? I just reacted instinctively because I wanted to help you!" Selena shouted back.

Dorven seemed to only just realize what he’d said. He fell silent, then closed his eyes for a few seconds.

"I’m sorry."

Selena sighed. "Never mind. Just don’t go using your emotions recklessly for now. Tell me, who was that woman?" she asked, causing Dorven to slowly open his eyes.

For quite a while, he just stared at Selena without saying a word. But then, his lips moved.

"She looked just like my mother."

"Your mother? Didn’t your mother pass away?"

"That’s true." Dorven nodded slowly. "She died when I was still a child."

"Then why did you look so surprised when you saw her?"

Dorven lowered his head. His hands were still clutching the rim of the stone vessel so tightly that his knuckles had turned white.

"Because I think I remember something."

"What is it?"