His Dark Moon, Her Sacrifice

Chapter 5

Ismerie closed her eyes, hiding the agony surging within them. Her voice was raw and broken.

"I will find a way."

At those words, the tension in Leontis' expression eased at once. The icy chill in his eyes melted away, replaced by warmth as gentle as spring sunlight.

"I've failed you these past few days," he said softly. "Come. Let me take you back to your room so you can rest."

He personally escorted her to their chambers. But after staying only a short while, he hurried away again to tend to other matters.

Left alone, Ismerie sat on the edge of the bed, her gaze vacant for a long time. Finally, she forced herself to stand.

Ignoring the crushing exhaustion weighing down every part of her body, she walked to her private study and began searching through the ancient manuscripts and star-chart volumes she had brought back from the cathedral.

She clung to one fragile hope. Somewhere within those dusty pages, there had to be another way to save his unborn child.

She searched throughout the entire night. One manuscript after another. One ancient record after another. The lamp on her desk burned steadily until dawn.

When the first pale light filtered through the window, Ismerie slowly closed the final book with trembling hands.

Every trace of color had drained from her face. Every text carried the same warning.

To exchange one's own fate for another life was to force the stars from their ordained paths and defy the very order of the universe.

At best, the caster's life force would burn away until nothing remained.

At worst... everyone they loved would be dragged into the backlash. No one would escape destruction.

She pressed trembling fingers against her throbbing temples. Just as she was about to close her eyes for a brief rest, the study door flew open.

Leontis strode inside, his entire body radiating cold fury.

"Ismerie." He fixed her with an unyielding stare. "Have you found a way?"

She swallowed the pain lodged in her chest and slowly rose to her feet.

"I'm still searching." She steadied herself before continuing, "I'll go into the city today and speak with the High Seer at the main cathedral."

From that day onward, she left before sunrise and returned long after nightfall. She visited every cathedral, chapel, and shrine throughout the city.

She sought out every priest. Every seer.

Every scholar who understood the stars. She begged each of them for another solution.

But every answer remained exactly the same. Fate is written among the stars. To overturn it is to invite destruction. There is no other way.

Several days later, Ismerie dragged herself back to the estate, exhausted beyond words.

Leontis was already waiting in the great hall.

The moment their eyes met, she searched his face. There was no concern. Only undisguised suspicion.

"You've been running all over the city every day." His voice was cold. "Have you learned anything at all?"

A sharp pain stabbed through Ismerie's heart. She looked at him quietly.

"Is this child truly all that matters to you?" Impatience settled over his features. It pressed down on her like an invisible weight.

"It's been days," he said, his tone growing harsher. "You've given me nothing but excuses."

He took another step closer. "Do you hate me so much... that you'd rather let my child die?"

The air seemed to vanish from the room. Ismerie struggled to breathe. She moistened her dry lips, about to answer, when the front doors burst open.

Lady Thornecroft swept into the hall with several maids and attendants following behind her.

She shot Ismerie a venomous glare. "Search every room. Immediately."

Leontis frowned. "Mother."

He stepped forward. "Why are you doing this?"

Ismerie followed behind him. "Lady Thornecroft... what does this mean?"

No one answered. The servants ignored her completely and hurried straight toward her chambers.

Within moments, the entire estate descended into chaos. Lamps and lanterns were carried through every corridor. Voices echoed from room to room. The noise grated against her nerves.

Leontis made no move to stop them. Instead, he turned quietly toward his mother. "Why have you ordered the house searched?"

Lady Thornecroft's face twisted with fury as she glared at Ismerie.

"Aveline grows weaker by the day. Her heart races and she's in constant pain. I consulted another seer. He told me someone in this house has laid a cursed alignment upon her."

Ismerie's eyes widened. "That's impossible. I would never do such a thing."

"I found it!" A maid's shrill cry interrupted her.

The servant hurried forward carrying a small cloth doll. She laid it before Lady Thornecroft.

Stitched into the doll were Aveline's complete birth chart and astrological signs. Its abdomen was covered with dozens of fine metal pins.

Ismerie froze. In the very next instant, she instinctively raised her hands and cast a quick reading, seeking the person who had framed her.

Lady Thornecroft snatched up the doll and hurled it directly at her.

"I knew you were vicious! The proof is right here! What more do you have to say to yourself?"

Ismerie slowly lifted her head to meet Leontis' eyes. Her expression remained calm. "Leontis, I've already cast the stars. This was planted deliberately."

She raised one hand and pointed toward the north-west wing of the estate. "The person responsible is staying in the guest suite there."

Leontis looked back at her. His eyes remained dark and unreadable.

Lady Thornecroft jabbed an accusing finger toward Ismerie. "You wicked woman! You dare blame Aveline for your own crimes?"

She turned sharply toward the servants. "Bring every maid who serves her. Question them until someone confesses!"

At that moment, the maid who had attended Ismerie for months suddenly collapsed onto her knees. She repeatedly struck her forehead against the floor.

"My Lady... I'll tell the truth. It was Mrs. Thornecroft who ordered me to do it." She turned toward Ismerie, tears streaming down her face. "My Lady... Please admit it was you. Don't let innocent people suffer in your place."

Leontis' eyes flashed with fury. Before anyone could react, his hand lashed out.

Crack!

The sharp sound echoed throughout the great hall.

Ismerie's head snapped violently to one side. A burning pain spread across her cheek.

Then deeper, straight into her heart. She stood there in stunned silence.

Dizzy.

Numb.

It took several long moments before the truth fully sank in.

Leontis... had struck her.

She drew in a ragged breath. Her trembling voice was barely audible. "Do you remember... what you swore before the holy image on the day we were married?"

Once, Ismerie had been the most gifted seer of her generation. A brilliant future had stretched before her. No one could understand why she had chosen Leontis, a man who possessed neither status nor wealth.

The entire country had opposed their marriage. The High Council of the Faith had sealed the great cathedral.

They ordered her to remain inside in prayer and contemplation. She was forbidden from seeing him again.

Leontis had knelt outside those locked doors for seven days and seven nights.

He forced his way through three guarded gates.

Bruised.

Bloodied.

Barely able to stand.

Yet he never gave up.

At last... he reached the altar where she had been waiting.

The instant he saw her, his eyes shone as brightly as the stars themselves.

He knelt reverently before the statue of the Blessed Mother. Then he spoke his vow. Every word was clear. Every word unwavering.

"Before you, I, Leontis Thornecroft, swear to devote my entire life to Ismerie. My heart will belong to her alone. I will always place her wishes before my own. I will never allow sorrow or harm to touch her. If I ever break this oath, may the stars themselves pass judgment upon me."

Even the most beautiful dream must one day come to an end.

The memory cut through Ismerie's heart like a blade.

She slowly lifted her head. Her eyes were crimson with unshed tears.

"You promised to love me. You promised to protect me. You promised me forever." She looked at him without blinking. "And now... You've broken almost every word."

Leontis' expression hardened like winter frost.

"I've never wronged you." His voice was utterly devoid of warmth. "You're the one who's pushed me beyond my limits."

He remembered every promise he had made.

He simply no longer cared.