The cries of a newborn filled the palace halls like the sudden crash of thunder after a long
storm. Midwives wept with relief, their hands trembling, while the queen collapsed into the
pillows, her chest heaving.
Saha's tears blurred her vision as she gasped, her voice breaking with both exhaustion and
wonder. "My son… Taehyung." She named him instantly, her lips curving into a weary but
proud smile.
But joy lasted only a moment.
When the midwives tried to lift the infant to place him in his mother's arms, their screams
filled the chamber. The child's tiny body was wrapped in flames—gentle yet untouchable,
burning without consuming. His wails were raw, echoing with something unearthly.
"No one can hold him!" one of the attendants cried, her hands blistered red from the attempt.
Saha's happiness shattered into horror. Her arms reached out desperately, but the flames
licked too close, forcing her back. "No… let me hold my son! He's mine!"
King Younghae rushed forward, his face pale, but the heat drove him back as well. He stood
frozen, his heart twisting with both pride and fear. Their firstborn was alive, yet untouchable.
The chamber fell into chaos until a firm, commanding voice cut through it.
"Enough. I will take him."
Lady Hanuel, robed in silver-blue, stepped forward. She lifted her hand, and a cold mist
followed her palm. When she reached for the crying child, her ice met his fire—and for the
first time, balance was struck. The flames dimmed, allowing her to cradle him safely against her chest.
Gasps filled the room. Some attendants dropped to their knees in fear, whispering frantically:
"A cursed child…"
"He carries the wrath of the heavens…"
"He cannot survive long…"
Saha's body trembled as tears streamed down her face. She clutched at Younghae's robe, her voice breaking. "Why… why our child?..... Why does the heavens seem to hate me? Why do they loathe me? What did I ever do to deserve this? Why us... Why????..."
Younghae had no answer. He could only stare at the boy, his eyes wide with grief and
disbelief. His son, the future of the throne, born with flames that rejected even a mother's
embrace.
Hanuel's heart ached as she pressed the baby close. Her cold aura seeped into him,
wrapping around the fire, suppressing its wildness enough for him to breathe steadily. She whispered softly, more to herself than anyone else:
"I will not let you burn yourself away, little one. Not while I am here. "
But in her heart, she already knew. Fire this pure, this divine, was not born by chance.
Someone's hand was behind it.
And she knew exactly whose.
Leaving the chamber after soothing the child into sleep, Hanuel's expression darkened. Her
footsteps led her not back to her quarters but to her shrine, her power flickering cold and
sharp.
In another part of the palace, flames glowed brighter within another shrine. Seorin knelt
before her altar, the fire reflecting in her eyes. When Hanuel left the birthing chamber, Seorin
already knew what had transpired.
Her lips curved into a smile, sharp and cruel.
The heavens themselves have cursed him.
The knowledge filled her with an intoxicating joy. For the heavens to curse a child at birth
meant they had blessed her decision—that her pain, her sacrifice, her rage were justified.
"He will not live long," she whispered, her voice trembling with glee. "Their heir, their joy, will
wither before their eyes. And I… I will watch."
Her laughter, soft at first, grew louder, echoing through the flames of her shrine.
Far away, in the cold chambers of the palace, Saha wept into Younghae's chest, and Hanuel
prayed for strength.
The shrine was quiet, the faint glow of the altar flames flickering against the cold stone walls.
Lady Hanuel entered, her steps heavy with purpose, her aura sharp as a blade of ice.
Across the chamber stood Seorin, her fire burning unnaturally bright, licking the walls as
though they too were fuel for her rage. She turned with a slow, mocking smile.
Hanuel's voice was cold, though her heart quaked.
"It was you."
Seorin tilted her head, feigning innocence, though the madness in her eyes betrayed her.
Tears streamed down her face, unstoppable, her sobs echoing through the ruined shrine.
"Why did you do this?... Why???" Lady Hanuel said losing her cool as she couldn't believe, she had known always known but she refused to believe that her sister will act that way.
"Why?? What do you mean by why? Even the heavens had justified my actions, even without my curse on him.... That child will still die " Lady Seorin laughed with tearing flowing down her cheek.
" What do you mean by that ? He .... Will... Die?" Lady Hanuel asked in confusion.
"Ohh.. You don't know?? That child was blessed with an incurable disease which means he won't live past thirty at most... But now that I've cursed him as well.... He won't even live past the age of fifteen..."
Lady Hanuel felt her world collapsing as she wondered if she had told the king that Seorin also liked him, would things have ended different ways.
Without a second thought, Lady Hanuel castes her strongest power and killed her sister instantly. It was as if killing her sister with her own hands was a punishment brought upon her, with tearing flowing down her cheeks. Lady Hanuel just killed her last family, the only family she had left in this world.
"Goodbye"
The kingdom would only know that Lady Hanuel destroyed a threat.
But here, beneath the moon's cold gaze, she was nothing but a sister who had killed her
only family.
The weight of the heavens seemed to linger in the king's chambers that evening. King
Younghae sat in silence, his hands pressed tightly together, as Hanuel spoke, her voice low
but unwavering.
"Your Majesty… Taehyung was not cursed by mortal hands alone. The heavens themselves
placed the curse upon him."
Younghae's breath caught in his chest, his jaw tightening. Though he had prepared himself
for grim news, hearing it aloud struck him like a blade.
Hanuel hesitated, then continued, her voice trembling ever so slightly. "But it was Seorin who added to it… she performed a ritual, strengthening the curse in his body, he could have lived pass thirty but now with her curse he will die very soon. It was my hand that ended her madness."
Unbeknownst to them, just outside the chamber doors, Saha stood frozen. She had been on her way to confess her own suspicions about the curse, but what she overheard struck her like lightning. Her heart thumped painfully in her chest, her legs weakening.
When she could no longer bear the silence, she stormed into the room, her hair disheveled, her eyes red with tears.
Both Younghae and Hanuel turned in shock.
Saha's voice cracked as she stared at Hanuel, her lips trembling. "Repeat what you just
said… Say it again."
Hanuel's lips parted, but no words came. Her eyes dropped to the floor, shame binding her
tongue.
That silence was the final blow.
Saha's tears spilled over, and she turned to Younghae with eyes full of betrayal, rage, and
despair. Her voice rose, shaking the chamber.
"Are you satisfied now, Younghae? All of this…everything….happened because of you!"
Younghae flinched, his hands curling into fists. "Saha—"
"Don't say my name!" she screamed, her voice breaking. "Had you told Seorin from the
beginning that you loved her, had you not hidden your heart, none of this would have
happened! Instead you let her suffer, you let her burn in her jealousy until she cursed our son. She pounded her fist against her chest, sobbing. "You ruined everything! You ruined Seorin, you ruined me, you ruined Taehyung!"
Her voice faltered into a bitter whisper. "And now… our child will die because of your
cowardice. I'm ashamed to be your friend, I shouldn't have cared about you, you don't
deserve it". Queen Saha added with your voice trembling,
"I regret meeting you, knowing you, caring for you, loving you as a friend. It was a mistake, we should never had met each other."
Younghae's face crumpled, but he did not answer. His throat felt caged, his heart bleeding at her words.
Saha's body trembled violently as she staggered forward, glaring at him through blurred
eyes. "I hate you, Younghae… I hate you so much! And you Hanuel, you always tell me that I'm like your family, is this how you treat family?? You are despicable, disgusting deity.... You don't even deserve to be a deity, you are evil. I hate you... How could you ???? How do you ruin me like this ????".
Her voice echoed through the chamber, piercing Hanuel's heart like a thousand blades.
Then, as if her fury had consumed the last of her strength, Saha's knees gave out. Her body
swayed, her face pale as death.
"Saha!" Younghae cried, rushing forward, but she collapsed before he could catch her.
The midwives came running at the sound, lifting the queen's frail body into their arms. One whispered frantically that she had not recovered from childbirth, her health already fragile from exhaustion.
As the queen was carried away, the chamber fell into heavy silence.
Hanuel stood with her eyes cast down, her heart aching with guilt. Younghae remained
frozen where she had fallen, staring at the empty space as though he could still hear her
words echoing in the air.
"I hate you… I hate you so much."
The words clung to him like chains, and for the first time, the mighty king felt powerless.