The silence lingered between them. The boy pulled his own hand away, placing it over his chest. The woman, bracing her hands against the snow, sat up on her knees and did not look away.
"Take me to your queen. Now."
***
The castle door opened and the cold wind rushed in, purifying the air. The boy, carrying her in his arms, collapsed to the floor along with her. Her body shattered against the ice with the sound of metal striking metal. She snorted and looked at him, saying in a low voice:
"I feel sorry for whoever ends up marrying you."
"Shut up!"
She laughed, and he approached again, picking her up in his arms. The housekeeper saw the scene through a crack in her bedroom door. She opened it and walked toward them.
"Aurora Sinhaygter?"
"Look at that, someone actually recognized me."
"Wait… you're the Pillar of Knowledge?!"
As if struck by an electric shock, her body slipped from his arms, her face hitting the ice once again. It took several long seconds before she answered.
"…I'm feeling very disrespected right now."
"I'm sorry!"
The boy tried to pick her up again, but she slapped his hand away and pushed herself back. She leaned against the wall, her legs trembling beneath her pants, her breathing coming in labored gasps.
Without saying a single word, she dragged her legs toward the locked bedroom door. Both followed her in silence: the housekeeper stayed behind the boy, and Gyne never took her eyes off the woman ahead.
"The key."
"Why do you need it?"
"The key!"
Her voice distorted, dark liquid escaping from her mouth. The boy, heart pounding, opened the door, though his fists clenched even tighter.
As she walked toward the bed, she found Carolina. No words were needed: Carolina opened her eyes, which shone in recognition.
"Apparently… I wasn't the only one who ended up destroying myself…"
"Everyone got hurt in that fight…"
She leaned her shoulders against the wall, hair falling over her face, her gaze resting on the mattress before meeting the queen's eyes again.
"You must already know what's going to happen to your people in a few days, right?"
"Unfortunately."
"Because I need something…"
She braced her hands on the bed and fell to her knees. The boy approached and supported her from under her arms. She gave him a grateful look before declaring:
"I need access to the underground of this kingdom."
Carolina, who had sounded exhausted before, widened her eyes.
"How do you know about that?"
"Underground…?"
Gyne whispered softly, looking at her sister with raised eyebrows.
"Gyne. Rita. Leave."
Hearing Carolina speak in that tone, they didn't hesitate to exit. Once they were alone, Carolina grabbed her by the lab coat, her face close to hers.
"Answer me, Pillar of Knowledge: how do you know about the underground?"
She didn't react to being grabbed; she remained still. Her eyes locked on Carolina's. The honesty in her voice was palpable when she said:
"As my name already suggests, I have my methods. My knowledge doesn't matter—what matters is what I'm going to do with it. And right now, I need to know where this underground is located."
"…It no longer exists."
Carolina released her, leaning her back against the headboard and looking away.
"Don't lie to me, Carolina. Tell me how to access it."
"I… I sealed it when I became queen."
Aurora fell silent for a moment before sitting on the edge of the bed. She wrapped herself in her lab coat and asked once more:
"Why did you seal it? And is there an alternative way to access it? After all, I know you wouldn't destroy something as precious as the underground."
"I have my reasons. That place contained Russian armaments and technologies that, if they fell into the wrong hands, could cause something far worse than the wars of the Old Society."
"I understand. So you're afraid someone with bad intentions might gain access to that kind of power, right?"
She didn't answer. Aurora took a deep breath, gently stroking her own fingers.
"…It's not just because of that. That place holds… that thing."
Aurora took several long seconds to respond, but when she did…
"That thing… the one all the world leaders fear… I was the one who created it."
Carolina slowly turned her face toward her, eyes full of disbelief, hands trembling against her chest.
"No, I don't believe that. That thing had already been there for a very long time, even before the previous queen—"
"They stole it from me. And now I'm going to take it back."
Carolina lowered her hands, resting them on her own lap.
"…If this is really true, what are you going to do with that thing?"
Aurora looked at Carolina, her eyes gleaming under the dim light of the bedside lamp.
"I'm going to put an end to the real monsters of this world."