He subtly slowed his breathing, grounding himself in the moment. No. Not everything needed to be exposed. Not here. Not now.
You have to stop. Focus. The warning rang loud and clear in his mind. This is your past to protect, your pain to guard.
The spell tugged at his will, tempting him to speak more, to peel back every layer. But he resisted. Shin reached deep within, drawing on the discipline he had sharpened over the years alongside his blade.
His hands curled slightly as he suppressed the rising tide of magic, steadying his breath until the tension loosened. Through sheer determination, he slipped free from the enchantment's grip, subtly and invisibly.
You cannot have this. Not all of it. Some truths remain mine, he told himself, fortifying the walls within his mind. His subconscious battled the pull, waging war against the invasive truth spell.
It clawed at him, demanding names, places, and confessions, but his will burned brighter. Gritting his teeth, he fought to silence the compulsion that threatened to lay him bare.
He faltered. His lips parted to speak of the place where he had trained, but he stopped himself. No. Not that. Never that. No one could know. The Hidden Temple remained sacred. He had already said too much.
A pained expression crossed Shin's face as he continued. His eyes turned distant, burdened by memories that pressed like relentless rain.
"For years, I wandered across the Province, refining my techniques while clinging to survival. I lied, cheated, stole, and killed, desperate for peace, aimlessly searching until I finally escaped to the West. I trained with no one. Just me, my blade, and the pain that kept me moving."
He paused, his voice rough. "Every cut I gave myself. Every enemy I struck down. It was all to bury what I'd lost... or maybe to remember it more clearly."
Shin sighed, wiping away tears as he tried to steady himself. He let out a quiet laugh. "Feels like a weight's been lifted. Sorry about that..." He chuckled, glancing at Laverna with a soft smile.
A strange sensation pulsed through her, one that didn't feel like her own. She bit her tongue harder, eyes fixed on his face, on those crimson eyes.
There was something dangerously captivating in them. She inhaled sharply, trying to anchor herself. Her heart pounded, not with fear, but with something even more dangerous.
Temptation. Curiosity. Get a grip, she scolded herself.
But it wasn't just attraction or awe. It was empathy, the kind that tore at her, urging her to reach out, to comfort him as he had comforted her.
An unspoken tension lingered in the room. Something else needed to be addressed.
King Tristan, Queen Mariam, and Master Davis gazed at Shin with reverence. The King stepped forward slowly, arms open and unthreatening.
He embraced Shin, silent tears streaming down his face. Shin returned the hug without hesitation.
To Shin, the King and Guild Master were like the uncles he once had. The Queen, like an aunt. They wept for the boy who had walked through fire alone.
There was a deep, unspoken camaraderie among them, a reunion long overdue. Laverna stepped closer, a heavy weight churning in her gut. She watched the King with cautious intrigue, her tail swaying, head tilting, amber eyes studying him.
The truth continued to unfurl naturally. Though the spell lingered, Shin's resolve had gained the upper hand.
The wilderness had a way of forging monsters. That Shin had held onto his composure was nothing short of remarkable.
It explained how he managed her temper. He'd surely had one of his own in his youth.
Her heart ached for him as he finished. The sadness and an unfamiliar emotion washed over the others, their eyes reflecting something deeper.
When he apologized to Laverna, the King and Queen embraced him again, as though welcoming home a lost son. Shin smiled faintly, warmed by their rare display of affection.
The Guild Master tousled Shin's hair. Shin laughed quietly, touched by the nostalgic gesture. In his family, such moments were rare symbols of love and comfort.
The King turned to his Queen. "My Queen, I believe we are satisfied with their testimonies, are we not?"
She nodded, her aura subtly shifting. With a flick of her fan, she pointed it downward. To Shin, the fan wasn't merely a decoration; it was her wand.
The room exhaled as the tension dissolved. The spell had been lifted.
Shin marveled at her control. No words, no circles. Just sheer, unyielding will.
A spellcaster who needed no incantations. Talent like hers was one in a million. Whether innate or cultivated, she wielded it with grace.
The Queen giggled, pressing a kiss to the King's lips. Their fire hadn't dimmed. It burned fiercely, visible to all. She was his Queen. He, her King.
"Indeed, my love. I remained silent because of the concentration. I couldn't even voice my disgust at our former allies, the Litchensteins. I'm relieved their evil has been exposed and dealt with by Shin and Laverna."
She winced at the memories Laverna had shared. Her heart ached as she imagined the horrors the girl had faced. She sighed and embraced Shin again, holding him as a mother would a wounded child.
It almost felt as if the King and Queen were ready to adopt him, to offer him the family he never had.
The Guild Master laughed, clapping Shin on the back. "My boy, you're the very image of your father. Even carry a trace of your mother's grace. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the warrior you've become. They'd be proud. You should be too."
The Queen's demeanor shifted from regal to playful, almost childlike. A subtle wrinkle appeared on Laverna's lip as she observed such devotion. Trusting someone that much was alien to her.
How odd, she mused silently, her tail swaying. A faint smile touched her lips as the Queen mentioned the Litchensteins along with the blade.
Laverna kept her distance, unwilling to let these strangers get too close. She watched as they hugged and spoke warmly to Shin, their eagerness to know the man he had become plain to see.
The emotions coming from him were mirrored in return. He wanted to know them too.
It was a sweet moment. One she had no understanding of, nor any desire for, deep within her own heart.